The Black Rose
by mickrulz
Summary: Rose has miraculously survived the devastation of Melbu Frahma, only to find herself being pulled into a political rift that threatens to tear the world asunder. Rose now embarks on a new adventure, an adventure of love, betrayal, bloodshed and death.
1. Chapter 1: A Fateful Meeting

**Authors Notes:****Welllll, never thought I'd be back here before I completed the story. In any event, as I stated in my note posted as my latest chapter, I've going back through my story from chapter one, doing revisions and editing where necessary. Since it was my first attempt at a serious story, the gap of writing quality from here to towards the end of the novel is as large as the gulf, so I'm attempting to give the novel as a whole a more balanced quality from start to finish.**

**As usual, thank you to all my fellow readers :)**

**Also there is the map I used to base and subsequently describe the different areas in Endiness, so feel free to take a look if it will better help you visualise the longer journeys, I know some readers (me included) like the idea of being able to actually look at a map and track the characters progress. Check out the link I posted under other info in my profile if interested. **

**Chapter 1: A Fateful Meeting**

_'Deep down I think I was always searching, searching for that something, searching for that someone. I didn't know it then myself, but once I found you, my whole world changed again. I just wish we didn't have to carry the weight of the world on our backs as we moved towards a new dawn.'_

The dark warrior opened her eyes after closing them momentarily, as if to give her eyes some respite from the unrelenting sun that blazed above the rocky crags like a ball of fire threatening to consume the world. It wasn't just the dry heat, devoid of any breeze or moisture or the lack of shade the rocky cliffs provided that jagged out around the parameter like a huge dust bowl, it was the way the whole locale was desolate of anything but the most stubborn of life forms. No plants or animals, just scorched earth and sand.

The lone woman heaved her blade out from an unfortunate small corpse of a bronze skinned goblin, one such life forms that had managed to somehow create a life in this pit of hell. Hoping to take its taller opponent by surprise, likely for the supplies she carried or perhaps for her own flesh which could be its own source of food, the Halfling met a swift relief from such concerns in the form of her thick bladed rapier piercing its small neck with the precision of a trained assassin.

With a sigh that was of more annoyance than exhaustion the dark mysterious woman stood a moment, surveying the ever distant barren wasteland that fanned out before her. Her violet, almost black cascade of hair fluttered behind her with the dusty wind current (making her wish she had cut it shorter, it was an inconvenience to have it at middle back length), her porcelain skin almost seeming to shine off the sun's reflection in the desolate grounds surrounding her.

"I hate this place" the women muttered to herself as she continued through the wasteland full of arching cliffs and sand dunes. A sheen of fine sand and dust had set over her lavender attire, giving the tough leather that stemmed to the cuffs of her arms and the very nape of her neck an old, rugged appearance. The gold trimmings woven across her front and shoulder pads, once adorned splendidly dulled to a cheap, almost fake quality. She had been trekking through the barren wilderness for hours, or had it turned into days? She wasn't sure; time seemed to move differently in this place. One thing she was sure of, besides the constant itching and aggravated skin, was that it was not this large when she last visited. Never the less, she continued, not feeling nearly as fatigued as she did irritated.

_At least the monsters aren't any tougher_ the strangely garbed (even for this time) warrior thought warily. As she continued her journey, she spotted small splashes of blood on the sandy earth. Quick to be alerted to potential danger as she always was, the vagabond swiftly drew her blade, readying for whatever lurks near. Her steps did not lose its zealousness, however caution was exercised. As she followed the trail of blood that led to an outcropping or possible cave entrance, she came to the conclusion it was human blood. She still did not relax however, as it could just be a victim to a monster lurking within.

The trail indeed led to a cave as she had first suspected, surrounded by large barons and other rocky features. Her initial thought to this was to simply leave it and continue on, she sensed no immediate danger and she could ill afford any more wasted time, but she felt compelled to enter the cave and find out what is in there. Intuition perhaps? She didn't know. All she could do was follow, moving quietly and quickly into the mouth of the cavern. Her azure eyes were atoned to darkness almost as much as the light, and as a result they adjusted almost instantly. The cave was reasonably small, not much bigger then a small house with only one large body and wasn't very deep, the opening allowing small rays of light to illuminate depths of the cavern. It was damp and cold, the tips of the rocky edges in the cave dripped slowly with condensation and moisture, but she welcomed the atmosphere. It was a nice change from the dry heat and humidity outside. She noticed soon after entry that the blood trail had stopped. She quickly became aware she was not alone, and readied her blade.

"Depending on how you act and how you answer the following questions, you may not have long to live" the dark haired wonderer threatened, her facial features turning stone. The figure behind her slowly became more visible. She could make out faint features, it was a male with long jet black hair that fell just below the top of his shoulders, was of average height, not much taller than her yet was well built. She also noticed several bandages and attempts at stitching on his arms and torso, suggesting recent injury.

"Don't underestimate me, I may seem injured, but I can hold my own" the stranger replied. He held a barbed spear in hand which he grasped strongly.

The dark haired women simply brushed a few strands of her silky black hair from her face back across the nape of her neck. This gesture almost seemed to have suggested that the women had dismissed the man as any viable threat. "

What do you want?" the man asked promptly. The cobalt hue of the woman's eyes analysed the stranger in front of her with an intensity that made him visibly uncomfortable. Then, after ascertaining the man would be of little threat even if he did turn out to be a well disguised bandit or otherwise hostile enemy, she relented. "Thought you might be a monster" she simply replied, although she did not relax entirely.

"Well, as you can see, I'm not a monster" the injured stranger spoke back roughly.

"Then I will take my leave." With that, the wondering women began to exit that cave, until a swarm of centaur horsemen armed with bow and arrows shot into the cave, arrows propelling towards them with deathly intent.

The female warrior was able to dodge most of the arrows that barraged her with nimble footwork and defensive fencing; however due to the surprise and suddenness of the attack she wasn't able to evade them all. One was able to scrape her inner exposed thigh, the one not protected by a thin layer legging armour that her other leg was. Bright red blood began to immediately dribble out of the wound however the immediate pain was not felt as adrenaline once again took control. She lunged forward at the first horsemen unprepared for any kind of counter-attack, thrusting her sword straight into its neck, the sound of rippling flesh reverberated throughout the shallow cave. She quickly ripped the blade out with one arm, a feat of impressive strength, as well as dodging the next wave of arrows that were intended to skewer her. They were as ineffective as the first.

"Can you fight!" The women barked back at the man in between dodges and attacks.

The male warrior appeared to hesitate a moment before charging into the fray, spear first. "I can be of help!"

"Don't get in the way. If you get into trouble don't expect me to save you" she explained quickly as she took another Centaur down with a diagonal cut its abdomen. An arrow shot at the women with quickening penetration. Fortunately the women's reflexes were much quicker and she deflected the arrow with the face of her sturdy Rapier that hardly even recoiled. With all enemies in the immediate area slain or dying, she quickly scanned for foes at a greater distance. _Five more_ she noted mentally. It was odd; Centaurs were solitary creatures by nature and usually roamed around in pairs at most. It was as if this was some kind of co-ordinated...

The dark warrior's train of thoughts was ended instantly as she heard the rallying cry of the man next to her. He recklessly charged into a nearby centaur, his long pike fanned out in undisciplined or no-premeditated directions, and although his techniques, or lack of were more akin to barbarism than any real strategy, the act of spinning it around in a circle proved effective in deflecting or cutting down the incoming arrows.

The woman was rather impressed, for someone who's injured he seemed to take care of himself fairly well, despite his lack of refined combat expertise. She heard a whelp from a centaur, followed by a loud thud. A centaur crashed heavily on the ground, signifying the end of its life. _Four more_ the women once again noted. A centaur came dashing up to the women, its hand moving about rhythmically as if to part take in some form or incantation.

_Not quite_ the feminine warrior thought as she sprinted up to the centaur with remarkable velocity, jumped up a few feet into the air and horizontally slashed the centaur, her swords starting from the top of its unprotected chest and ending at its groin. The dexterous act was finalized by thick torrents of spraying blood.

The remaining three creatures hesitated for a few seconds, before turning tail and dashing off as far as their four-legged hooves could carry them. After watching the two fighters slay nearly a dozen of their kin, they apparently wanted no further part in the slaughter.

The women withdrew her blade from the fallen cadaver and quickly inspected the area once again, to be sure that nothing else lingered. The women waited to they were well out of sight before she sheathed her sword. As she did, she turned around and looked at her situational comrade, who surprisingly sustained no additional injuries. He was panting heavily though, exertion taking its toll, his rugged face a blanket of sweat.

"You're injured" the black haired warrior spoke between gruff pants. The women looked down at her leg, and saw the blood gushing freely now out of the flesh wound she had sustained by the arrow.

"I'll be fine" the women replied sternly. He was not going to drop it however.

"Where are you headed? I can give you an escort" the stranger offered.

"It's not necessary." Her response was quick and harsh, a kind of callousness that jagged against her apparent young beauty like whetstone on a blade. The man was becoming vexed, and it was showing on his face as his brow twitched in frustration.

"C'mon. To be in the barrens your either heading for Donau or Fletz" the man stated. The women however remained reticent. He continued on, no longer abashed: "And plus, you did save my life, whether you meant to or not. In my condition I doubt I would be able to handle all those centaurs. Plus you look tired; I have a place in Fletz where you can tend your wound and rest up. It's the least I can do"

The women's initial thought was to decline, she didn't need the help of others, especially this suspicious stranger, however she had been wondering for what felt like days straight and her body protested hotly for respite. She gauged the man a final time, and came to the conclusion he was trustworthy, at least for the moment. After what seemed like an eternity the dark warrior replied: "I guess I'll take you up on that offer." The man smiled warmly.

"Then let us leave." He took lead, using his weapon as a makeshift cane to help maintain stability. He had trouble moving, that much could be seen by how every step the man took contorted his face in a painful grimace. Yet the woman followed without a word, keeping a safe distance of closeness without being _too _close. Once they left the coolness of the save the outside heat hit them like a palpable force, the sun still burning hot despite its rapid decline into another warm evening. The women finally got a proper glimpse at her new companion, rather than just a faint silhouette. He wore a torn white tank top followed by blue long pants, yet no sign of any protective armor or accessories save a silver erring in his right ear (that may or may not hold any significance) and a peculiar wristband around his left wrist. That, she thought, did hold some sentimental significance, although she couldn't be sure. Other than that besides the fact he had the strong build of someone who must have engaged in years of hard labour, he had nothing remarkable about him. In some ways he was foolish, to be wondering around the barrens without as much as a shed of protective clothing was foolhardy to say the least.

After they travelled a small distance outside the cave, the man turned around and regarded the woman evenly, before a sheepish smile crossed his face. "How foolish of me, I've forgotten my manners. The names Zack, nice to meet you."

The woman casually waved away his sudden etiquette. "I'm Rose."

**Authors Notes II: ****Seesh, it was worse than I realised O.o. Good to go back to the roots, but man has my prose changed. Hope the beginning is a little more... engaging now that the style is a little more fluid and not so uneven.**


	2. Chapter 2: Another War?

**Chapter 2: Another War?**

Rose soon came to regret telling Zack her real name. As he told her, his mouth gaped blatantly. "As in the Rose that fought with Dart to beat the tyrant Melbu Frahma?" He had asked stupefied. Rose nodded reluctantly, once more wishing she had chosen an alias.

"It's no big deal" she tried to play, but he appeared not to hear her.

"But you were pronounced dead with your lover Zeig" Zack replied, still in shock. "Bards sung of the unimaginable tales of your groups exploits in every tavern and inn, scrolls chronicling your journey according to the accounts of people who had met or helped you were written and passed over to royal persons and those close enough to be lucky enough to read them. No one since the Dragoons in the Dragon Campaign were hailed as much as you and your eight companions!"

Rose, partly surprised their journey became so widespread that even seeming simpletons such as this were made aware, was shadowed by what Zack could only interpret of deep sadness and regret. She was still mourning the death of her lover, who was taken away from her again by the cruelty of fate, just as they had reconciled their age old differences. The prattle of Zack's questions brought her out of her deepening stupor.

"How… how did you survive?" he asked frankly.

"It doesn't matter. What matters as we continue on to Fletz" Rose scowled unhappily. It was hard enough thinking about all of it in the recesses of her own mind, she was not about to talk about it with some stranger she had only just met. She continued to walk ahead, signifying the end of their conversation.

"But, I have many more questions to ask" Zack said as he chased his new companion. Rose just simply kept walking in front of him, oblivious to his queries.

When his babble didn't cease Rose stopped and turned to him, her glare as cold as ice. "You talk too much." Zack merely laughed.

"Yeah, I get that a lot."

Rose face palmed internally. This was going to be a very gruelling journey.

They finally made their way to Fletz, the heartland of the otherwise desolate western region of Endiness, Tiberoa. The town hadn't changed a bit since she last visited, populated with people deeply connected with the stars and astronomy. Even the outlay of the town had changed little; painted white with dome houses atop a floor of equally pallid stone aside a gushing gully that separated the city into two halves. Even the dominating spires of the Twin Castle stood the same, a sign of timeless perpetuity in an era of ever changing landscape in wake of the fall of Melbu Frahma and the end of the Endiness war that spread to all its reaches.

When they reached their destination, it was well into the night. Rose was glad for the familiar covering of darkness. If her reputation had become as well spread as Zack made out, she did not want to be noticed by the villagers. Zack's house was just near the entrance, not far from the environmentalist women's house if Rose recalled which whom Albert spoke all night to, literally. When Rose entered the house she was rather surprised to see that it was well kept and clean. There was nothing worth mentioning outside of normal household items, a table, chairs, 2 rooms, a kitchen and various draws and other household appliances.

"Wait here for a tick, I'mma go get some medical supplies, won't be long" Zack assured as he disappeared into a room. Rose walked up to the nearby wall, and leaned against it, crossing her arms as she did so often when feeling pensive. She relieved some of the pressure of her wounded thigh. Now that the battle was well and truly over, pain was now eminent. It didn't bother her overmuch, but it was a noticeable throb. She didn't complain however, it was a familiar throb she had dealt with many, many times over the course of her overdrawn life.

"Here" Zack said as he returned with a medical case, holding it out for her to take. Rose opened it and extracted the necessary tools she'd need to stitch up the wound.

"You can use a chair if you'd prefer" Zack offered. Rose silently walked over to one, hoisted her injured leg on it, and immediately began to disinfect it. Zack watched her silently for a time, wondering why her top half was so well covered yet her bottom half was not. She wore a small ... skirt (for lack of a better term) like leggings that only protected the tops of her thighs, her right uninjured leg protected by a subsequent separate legging that began an inch or two where her waist armour had ended and ended below the beginning of boots. Yet her left leg was mostly naked till the rise of her boot. All in all, he thought her attire peculiar indeed.

"Do Dart and the rest know about your reappearance?" Zack eventually asked while he inspected his own wounds to see if any of them had become re-opened in the battle.

"No" Rose replied, keeping her attention on fixing her leg. She really wasn't keen for idle conversation.

"Why not? I'm sure they'd be happy to know you're not dead" Zack wondered intrigued.

"Perhaps so, but I am no further use to them. We have completed our mission that is all" Rose stated cynically.

"But you were all close right? Dart seemed rather distressed over your death" Zack explained to her. Rose winced slightly as she put the needle through the open wound, starting to stitch it.

"You know him?" Rose asked, surprising Zack with her first question of the evening. Zack shook his head.

"Just heresy. We get a lot of gossip in these parts, despite our isolation"

"It doesn't matter, they will be fine without me" Rose finished as she continued stitching. Zack decided it was best to leave this subject, at least for now. Instead he turned his attention to his own wounds.

"Damn it" Zack cursed as he saw blood began to flow as he examined the gash on his torso.

"What is it?" Rose inquired, still not drawing too much attention away from her stitching.

"My wound has opened back up" the black haired man replied unhappily. "Looks like I'll be stitching some as well."

Rose said nothing, only continued to stitch, grunting in more discomfort than pain every so often.

"You seem to cope with injuries pretty well" Zack commented as he took a needle and suture and began to stitch his own wound.

"It's nothing compared to the injuries I have endured in the past" Rose spoke nonchalantly. She then finished off her stitching, cutting the excess thread and examining her work. Despite her weariness, she managed to stitch well. It wouldn't open again unless she put excessive pressure on it.

"I don't doubt that" Zack replied, wincing in pain. It was evident that he was holding a lot of it in, to avoid himself looking weak she supposed. She studied the way he stitched, and then quietly walked up to him.

"No wonder" Rose mumbled from behind him. "Your stitching is inefficient. There is a much easier way" Rose suggested.

"Do enlighten me" Zack chocked out, barley able to hide the pain he was in. Rose took the needle off him, and then began to demonstrate on him. He soon felt relief from the pain he was in, making him realise how inefficient his stitching really was. "Not only is it less painful, if you circulate the needle like this, it also makes it harder for the wound to reopen" Rose explained as she continued to exhibit on the nearly stitched up wound.

"Thank you" he said, giving her another warm smile.

"No need to thank me. I did it because I wanted to that's all" she justified. Zack nodded as Rose finished up the stitching. "If you don't require anything else of me, I would like to sleep. I have not had any sleep in days." Zack smiled in response.

"Sure. The room to your left is a spare room. The bed is made, so do make yourself comfortable. There is spare clothes and a bath should you require it." Rose nodded in response, and then disappeared into the spare room, where she had a quick bath then crashed on the bed. Not moments later, sleep consumed her.

* * *

Rose woke up the next morning to the ovation of the citizens of Fletz. She let out a groan, and then slowly opened her eyes, taking a few seconds to adjust to the new sunlight that shone through the now open window adjacent to her bed. It didn't take her long to identify the cheers. Princess Emily was visiting the town it appeared. She got up groggily at first, taking a couple of minutes for her drained body wake up completely.

_Damn it, it's already this late?_ Rose stated more than actually question, for she knew the answer. She had planned on getting a few hours of sleep, then leaving at dawn before Zack could wake up. Her body apparently had other plans. Rose was ripped away from her thoughts by a knock on the door.

"You awake yet Rose?" the voice asked. Rose immediately identified it as Zack.

"Yes" She responded half heartedly. She felt more tired than she had felt before she actually slept.

"Can I come in?" Zack asked, not wanting to upset or startle her by barging in.

Rose walked up and opened the door. Before her was Zack, newly dressed in a red leather armour that fitted him perfectly, its sleeves ending at his wrists. It instantly reminded Rose of Darts armour and a pang of nostalgia hit her so hard it was hard not to wallow in it. His thighs were covered in silver coloured iron that finished below his knee. He had matching silver grievers.

_Why were you not wearing that yesterday? _Then: _Why are you wearing the armour now, come to think of that? _She grew suspicious once more.

"Want some food? I'm sure you're hungry" Zack asked. It took Rose a moment to register he was holding a tray of food. A soup full of various vegetables in a nice white and blue bowl was the only thing visible on the tray.

"Thanks" Rose muttered as she took the bowl, sat down on the bed and began to eat her soup.

"So how is it?" Zack asked smiling.

"It's fine" Rose replied, not looking up at him. She continued sipping at her soup.

"Not one for talking, even when rested?" Zack said quietly, knowing what the answer would be.

"I tried to make that as obvious as I could yesterday" Rose admitted, still not looking at him. "But take no offence; it's just how I am." She slowly moved a few strands of her dark hair that fell in front of her and neatly placed it behind her ear. Zack took a moment to admire her elegance. Her dark and mysterious nature aroused his interest greatly. Zack once again decided he'd try to communicate with her, despite the earlier lack of desire to do such a thing.

"So what's it like being a renowned Dragoon?" Zack asked excitedly. It came across as giddy and fan boyish- a certain gush he hated to have in his voice, but he thought it better to approach her with a topic of neutrality rather than personal.

Rose stopped sipping her soup for a moment and considered the question carefully.

"It was a more of a burden then a joy" she replied slowly.

"At least it was an answer besides be quiet" Zack muttered. She continued to eat her soup. Just when Zack though he'd have to ask another question to keep the conversation ball rolling, Rose continued.

"I am no longer a Dragoon" she said plainly. Zack's eye shot open.

"Why not? I thought you were-"he was cut off by Rose.

"After we defeated Melbu Frahma, the Darkness Dragoon Spirit decided I was no longer needed. My mission was completed after all, and it is the spirit that chooses the user, not vice-versa."

"Oh. Sorry to hear that" Zack responded sympathetically. Rose took another sip of her soup, deciding she quite enjoyed the taste.

"After the explosion, I awoke to find a bright silver aura surrounded my body which remained unharmed. My initial thought was I was dead, but fate had other plans. An image of..." she paused a moment as a flash of her once good friend Shirley entering her mind. "An old friend appeared before me, eventually disappearing into the hazel fog that surrounded the area I was in. When the fog evaporated I scanned the area and realized was no longer on the moon, but rather back on the solid ground of Serdio. It was then I registered I was alive.

"I see" Zack said, listening to her story intently. He was about to ask who this friend was, if it were one of her travelling companions was, but decided he'd let her continue.

"I looked around for my Dragoon Spirit, but I could not feel is resonance." Rose paused, to take the last remaining sips of her soup, then finished. "After it became evident I was no longer a chosen Dragoon, so I travelled around aimlessly and ended up here."

Zack nodded, taking in all she had just explained to him. "Who is this friend of yours?" Zack asked, relenting to his curiosity. If this person could bring Rose back from the brink of death then this friend had to be a powerful ally indeed.

Rose couldn't help but be exasperated a little. She didn't feel complied to explain the smaller details.

"An old friend, that's all" she stated ambiguously.

Zack decided he'd probe no further. "Hope you find Zeig" he commented. Rose shook her head softly before replying.

"I am not a foolish woman. I have already resigned to the fact that he did not share my fortune."

Feeling nothing more could be said on the subject, Zack walked over and picked up her bowl of what used to be soup, where he would leave the room to wash it up with the rest of the dishes.

"Need anything else?" He asked before he left. The dark women shook her head, signifying she was satisfied. Zack held his gaze on her a moment longer, then exited the room.

Rose contemplated on where she would head off to next. In all her travelling she never had a specific goal or objective, she just wondered around aimlessly, trying to keep herself out of the despair that threatened to consume her soul. No matter how many pointless battles or how many near inhabitable areas she scaled, it was a losing battle, every day drawing closer to the time the weight of losing her only lover and all her friends would crush her completely. Coupled with the fact she was no longer a Dragoon Knight or the soldier responsible for killing the Moon Child, her only goal in life, she felt utterly lost, unanchored in a vast see of emptiness.

She sighed, doing away with such thoughts, at least for the time being. Perhaps she would try and board the Queen Fury and go to Mille Seseau, where should would eventually make her way to Death Frontier, a somehow fitting destination. She exited the room, and entered the living room.

"Thanks for the hospitality, but I need to-" Rose was cut off as she heard screams of pain and the sounds of weapons clashing.

"ALERT! ALERT! FLETZ IS UNDER ATTACK!" voices warbled like the sound of an automated alarm. Men began to scream out before they were brutally slaughtered by unknown assailants. Rose tensed then cast a glanced towards Zack who was already scrambling for his weapon. By some non-verbal agreement they both ushered out of the house and into the chaos filled streets.

Under attack was an understatement. Unknown soldiers began to pour in from all entry points of the town relentlessly, slaughtering soldiers, men, women and children without pause. Upon closer inspection Rose could distinguish the familiar Sandorian emblem branded on their dark steel armour and shields. Yet that wasn't the biggest shock, the real incredulity lay in the fact she could see them _flying_. They had wings and flew much like the Winglies. But that was impossible, yet the similarities with the Winglies didn't end there. They were casting high level magic, raining death from above, the poor victims below being vaporised by the force of such powerful spells.

_What the hell is going on?_

"Look out!" Zack screamed as a fireball shot towards Rose. She had just enough time to move out of the way, but the shockwave of the blast knocked her off her feet. Zack jumped up and attempted to stab solider that was in mid flight with his spear, threatening to lance a momentarily vulnerable Rose, however the soldier simply blocked it and brushed him off with ease of a season fighter. The distraction did allow Rose to get to her feet and get herself in a position to defend herself though.

"As if invading Bale wasn't enough for you bastards!" Zack cursed at the soldier in fury. Rose noted the fact that the soldiers appeared somehow recognizable to Zack, but such questions would have to be asked after the battle had come to a close. The soldier meantime just stared at him, nothing in his eyes but emptiness, and prepared for another attack. Preparing would be the only and last thing he would do though as he made the foolish mistake of taking his attention off Rose. Before the hovering soldier knew it, he was impaled from behind by Rose's rapier, bringing the soldier to the ground with a loud thud. She drew her sword out of the groaning soldier with fluid grace, then walked up to meet Zack.

Before they could say or plan anything an older stranger appeared behind them. He was elderly by the look of his worn face behind a mane of bleach blonde facial hair that otherwise obscured his face. To further support this analysis his blue eyes (although lighter than rose's) blazed the spirit of a veteran under the short tuft of matching blonde hair that shadowed his forehead. Rose steeled herself, unsure if he was friend or foe. He wore different garments to the invading soldiers, opting instead for a robe of forest green with a kind of roaring dragon emblemized on his chest. Yet for all she knew it could simply mean he was some kind of elite or captain.

"We must escape. Follow me" The man stated. His voice was deep and commanding. Zack looked stricken for a moment, glancing at him then around the falling town.

"The city will fall, there are too many soldiers, all you'll gain from defending it now is a grim death!" Fury clouded Zack's eyes as he resigned to the strangers words.

"Damn it all" Zack hissed as he grabbed Roses hand. "We must flee. Don't worry, I know this man, he's trustworthy" he told her as he encouraged her to run with them. She didn't like this at all, but as she glanced at the city that was doomed to fall under invasion, she saw she had little choice. Trust it seemed, something she had something doing under the best of times, was something she'd have to do now more than ever.

Not having much of an alternative she complied. They ran to the east, evading the combating soldiers and moving towards the cleft that would lead them to an escape route out of Fletz. It wasn't going to be so easy however, three hovering soldiers barred their path.

"I'll handle this" Zack said. He walked up forward, and then extended his arms as far as they would go to the sides as a shimmer of red, glowing power began to envelop him.

A field of burning fire engulfed Zack. At first Rose thought it was the magic of the soldiers, casting some kind of incinerating spell of fiery death, but his screams, not one of pain but of focused pressure, alluded to the real fact: He was no dying but changing. He curled up into a half prone position, and then expanded his body to its full length, the magnificent flames diminishing, leaving a new Zack in their wake. He was now shrouded in blazing red scale like armour, which covered him from head to toe. Two large wings were on either side of his back, their almost transparent like appearance reflecting the nearby fragments of heat and dust. Rose gasped in surprise as she witnessed Zack's transformation.

"Explosion!" Zack cried as he flew up in the air, then sped down and stabbed his spear into the ground. Hot rocks of flame began to fly out of the ground at frightening speeds, engulfing the three soldiers in blistering heat. They screamed and cried in agony, until they finally hit the ground, no more than cinder and bones.

Rose was still awestruck. How did he acquire the Red Eye Dragoon Spirit? Zack then transformed back into his human self, an effort which took a visible toll. "Time to go" He ordered as he grabbed Rose and headed into the barrens beyond.


	3. Chapter 3: Questions and Answers

**Chapter 3: Questions and Answers**

Once they were deep into the barrens, Fletz but spec of many burnings lights and activity in the distance behind them, the trio moved into a small grotto not so different from the one Rose had met Zack in earlier the previous day. Night had begun to descend, the heat simmering from the earth back towards the sky as the sun waned behind the rocky cliffs overhead. Dusk Rose hoped, would dissuade any soldiers from searching the barrens for any stragglers or perhaps the three of them specifically if their escape had become known, their heads wanted for killing few of their fellow comrades. Once within the damp confines of the cave, the three of them hunkered in a small circle, waiting for the long twilight to shift into total darkness.

Rose had demanded they set up at camp and rest for the night; however at that moment sleep was the furthest thing from her mind. What she really wanted was answers.

With no choice but to make do with sleeping on the uncomfortable earth beneath them Rose immediately began to interrogate.

"Alright, now that I've been dragged into this, I want my questions answered." Her tone was razor sharp, indicating any deceit would not go unpunished. "First of all, who are you?" She pointed at the new intruder beside them. The blonde older man took a breath, and then explained.

"My name is Wen Eisenhower. I am one of the commanding members of the underground rebellion, a faction that opposes evil and corruption." Rose studied him to try and spy and telltale signs of insincerity or untruth. As far as she could tell there were none, but some people were crafty. She held her gaze firm as he continued his explanation. When none was forthcoming Rose ushered him forward impatiently.

"And?"

"We are an organization that is against anyone who tries to seize the world for their one personal gain, and those who strive to mistreat it. Lately, Sandora has rebuilt its army, under a new rulership. It's now threatening to take over all major cities. Basil was the first to fall, and now Fletz will likely fall under Sandorian rulership by sunrise. We suspect Deningrad will be the next target" Wen explained.

Rose became more impatient. It still didn't explain what any of this had to do with her.

"Now, the raid on Fletz took us by surprise. Zack, who is one of our most trusted and loyal members, was send to notify the king of a possible invasion. As it turned out, seeking an audience with him or any other royal member was harder than anticipated. Due to the recent attack on Basil they were very wary of whom they let into the castle. In any event Sandora's early sneak attack caught us all of guard." His expression turned grim. "We were too late. We learned Sandora were on the move, and so I was sent to assist Zack and make sure he made it out of his hometown alive if things turned ugly."

"So I was brought along because I just happened to be with Zack?" Rose questioned. Wen shook his head.

"Our intelligence already confirmed your presence. Your evacuation was also one of my priorities."

"…How?" Rose asked with a mixture of bewilderment and distrust

"That would be my part" Zack interjected. "You see, notifying the king was not my only primary objective. We heard you docked in Donau, and decided that if possible, I would try and get in contact with you."

"So our meeting was no accident?" Rose responded fiercely. This was all sounding too convenient for coincidences.

"Actually, it was. I did plan to meet you, however I had ran into a surprise attack and got injured by the local monsters. It was pure dumb luck you bumped into me." Zack admitted.

"Okay, why would you want me?" Rose once again questioned, not entirely convinced the meeting was coincidental

"Well, being one of seven who defeated Melbu Frahma, you'd be an excellent asset to our organization" Wen said, taking back the reigns of the conversation. "As you have already realised, the soldiers you fought are no ordinary soldiers. We have conclusive evidence that they are Wingly-Human cross breeds."

"How?" Rose questioned with a tone of disbelief. "The few Winglies left would never approve, cross breeding in their eyes would be viewed as heinous, mere aberrations."

"This is believed to be the work of Melbu Frahma. Before he was destroyed, he made many clones testing, trying to build up a personal army of sorts. He succeeded in cloning Wingly cross with humans, creating the 'perfect genome soldier' in his eyes. They were enhanced with the strength of humans, and endowed with the magic of Winglies. He created thousands of them, all prototypes of course. Originally they were never alive, just empty vessels. Someone in Sandora has managed to discover these prototypes, and harness their power as a tool of war."

Rose couldn't believe what she was hearing. "So, all that to get me to join your faction?" Rose verified, making sure she got the story straight. Wen and Zack both nodded.

"Sandora grows more powerful each day. We need all the help we can get, and it comes no better then you Rose" Wen stated flatly. This put Rose into a silence as she withdrew inside herself, mulling over what she had just learned.

"You're not the only one of your former comrades to join" Wen informed Rose. Rose eyes suddenly met his. "Dart, Shana, Albert, Haschel, Kongol and Meru all serve with us, after we approached them about the issue." Wen took a breath. "They are currently on an infiltration mission in the black castle, Sandora's heart."

Rose shot a dangerous look towards Zack. "You feigned ignorance about the fate of my friends." Her voice was razor sharp, border-lining venomous. "As well as the knowledge you possess about me, Dragoons and our expedition to fight Frahma, so you've already deceived me once if what you say is true, so why should I trust you any more now?"

"Sorry" he said, humbled. "I just... didn't want to breach the topic until well... we had this conversation. To suddenly meet and barrage you with statements like that would make me appear somehow... more untrustworthy, no? I mean no harm by withholding information; I always planned to reveal it to you. I was just trying to gauge what kind of person you were by making idle chatter."

"If you wish to blame someone, place it on me Rose" Wen interjected. "It was me who told him to keep the information secret until we discussed joining our cause."

Rose's eyes moved from Zack to Wen. From what she gathered Zack was too transparent for any real act of cunning of slyness. Wen on the other hand, she had no problems seeing him in such a light. By the way Zack kept looking towards this green so-called friend for some kind of affirmative after nearly everything he said or did, she got the idea he was the brains behind the outfit.

"So you are using my friends as a lure to enlist me?" Rose said, her tone still dagger sharp. Her hand, until now resting idly on her lap moved slowly towards the pommel of her sword.

"Not at all, please don't get the wrong idea" Wen said desperately. "It's just merely giving you another reason _to _join. If your comrades saw fit to join, we simply assumed by virtue that you would as well."

"Wrong" Rose responded. "I have no desire to meddle in any more world affairs; I've had enough of that for my long life. Anyhow, if Dart and his group are on the job, you'll have nothing to worry about, they're the best."

"Perhaps" Wen agreed. "Perhaps not, we are dealing with something we're having trouble grasping at this time. Plus, I'm sure you'd like to at least meet with them once more, no?"

_Dangling the bait again _Rose thought morbidly.

"We are heading back to our headquarters in Rouge in any event, so we extend our invitation to you. If nothing more come for a meeting, and if you still wish not to get involved, we will see you off where it is you wish and see of us no more."

_Too good to be true... _

"I'll think about it" Rose finally answered. Wen nodded.

"Take your time. We'll be leaving tomorrow. We'll have your answer then" Wen told her. "For now, I suggest we get some sleep."

"Not yet. I have one final question" Rose announced. Wen and Zack looked at her, questioningly.

"How did you come in possession of the Red-Eyed Dragoon spirit?" Rose questioned, looking at Zack carefully. Zack rubbed his chin with his hand, looking as if to recall the situation in his head.

"Myself and a few other trusted faction members were sent out to Bale to try and help defend it from the onslaught of the Sandorian army. Among them was their commander, who had the Dragoon spirit. We have reports that as soon as the Moon That Never Sets exploded, Sandora was there to excavate the remains. The commander was no pushover though, even though we had the clear number advantage against him it took a gruelling amount of time to actually kill him. Although we won out, it was a hollow victory" Zack trailed off, his face becoming saddened.

"You see his best friend and partner died alongside him, taking a mortal wound that was intended for Zack" Wen broke in. "He, above all of us took the losses hard." His shrewd, almost calculating eyes drifted to the south where Fletz now lay under siege. "And now he has lost his homeland..."

Rose began to feel a fraction of pity for him. She knew all too well what it was like to lose comrades on the battlefield.

"As I delivered the final blow, the Dragoon Spirit was entrusted to me" Zack reminisced. "I gladly accepted it, realizing how much more help I could be to the organization."

It was funny. After hearing to story, it reminded her of what Rose hold told Dart on the Queen Fury, about how the Dragoons power feeds off that of the user's insanity.

"Do you have any more questions?" Zack asked, breaking her reverie

"No, that's all" Rose finished, looking up at the dark sky, admiring the stars. She often though it looked rather plain without the Moon That Never Sets. "I've decided I will tag along" Rose said finally, still staring up at the sky.

"That is relieving news Rose. We hope you will follow the example of your friends and help us put a stop to the tyrant that is Sandora" Wen expressed. "But let us sleep; we have quite the journey tomorrow." With that, nothing else was said between the three as they fell into a restless, uneasy sleep.

Rose got the least amount of sleep out of the three, her mind not only working overtime trying to digest all the new information, but also wondering how Dart and the rest would react to her still being alive. She tossed and turned, only getting an hour or two of sleep before the sun rose. Sighing but no stranger to a sleepless night or two, the dark warrior got to her feet, attached her weapon then ventured outside cavern. Zack was up as well, surveying the wasteland beyond. As Rose exited Zack spun around.

"Oh, morning Rose" Zack greeted. Rose said nothing but sat down next to him on the scorched, dusty earth.

"Talkative as usual" Zack commented sarcastically. Rose still didn't reply. "Lighten up will ya? By the look of you you'd think that your whole family died or something."

"Why talk if there's no need to?" Rose questioned him. Zack simply smiled. It was a smile that reminded her both of Dart and Zeig, and she hated herself for comparing the three. _It's just the red armour and the fact he, like the other two were chosen to wield the Red-Eyed Dragoon Sprit. _

"To find out more about a person is one example" Zack rebutted, still smiling.

"I don't need to hear about everyone's life story" Rose fought back.

"Well, suit yourself" Zack concluded, seeing the conversation not really going anywhere. Wen soon joined at the fire.

"It's all organized. We are to rendezvous in three hours at the port in Donau. There, we will have our own escort ship take us to Rogue" Wen said, good-natured at the prospect of another recruit. "Good to see you're up Rose" he added. Rose did not acknowledge the comment. "Since we are all up, we may as well pack and start our journey to Rouge immediately." Zack and Rose got up and began to prepare themselves for the journey ahead.

It wasn't long before they started moving again. With the three of them, the monsters along the way proved to be of little threat. Not only that but Zack knew the Barrens so well they were able to traverse the long canyon in a fraction of the time it would have taken Rose on her own. It appeared the boy had his uses after all. By noon, they were at Port Donau, waiting to be shipped off to Rogue.

The scenery hadn't changed since she was last here either. There were still plenty of flowers, the endless sea, and the busy hordes of people tending the docks. Rose had argued furiously within her mind about following these two. They had no concrete evidence that what they said was true, for all she know this could all be a trap. But her intuition told her differently, and at times like this, intuition was all you had. She had survived on it in many other dire situations and it hadn't failed her yet.

"You're always so tense" Zack shot at Rose suddenly, as she watched the sea crash against Donau's port. The smell of sea and salt and the sound of seagulls sent another bolt of nostalgia through the dark warrior.

"I still don't trust you" Rose replied bluntly. Looking into the distance, she spotted a docking ship. She decided that that would most likely be the ship they'd travel on, and she was right.

"Don't blame you I guess. A lot has happened all at once, but when we get to H.Q you'll trust us a little more." Zack sounded more hopeful then assuring.

"Just remember I'll have no qualms about killing you should I suspect foul play" Rose warned again. Zack showed no signs of worry at all, and continued on.

"That won't be necessary missy-"

Don't call me that" Rose snapped sharply. Zack laughed a little, nervously. Then, Zack's eyes began to glean as his smile broadened. She would soon learn that Zack would often take every opportunity he could to be curt.

"Okay, okay. How 'bout Rosie?"

She shot another look that could kill. "Keep those kinds of comments up, and they will be engraving your name on a tombstone" Rose growled. Zack decided that would be enough teasing for now. He really didn't want to get on the wrong side of her; she was a frightening woman after all.

The boat was now easily identifiable. It was not the largest vessel she had seen, certainly not when compared to a ship the likes of the Queen Fury, but it had all the basic architecture of a modern vessel, iron on the outside of the boat, wood on the inside. As it came closer rose could see that it had a second floor under wooden floor boards, what she assumed downstairs rooms. From the bow, she could easily identify the captains quarters, a room above the ship with glass walls around it. On the rear, she could see the leading stairways into the engine room.

"That will be our ticket to Rogue" Wen pointed, as if the ship docking was not evidence enough. "We will most likely not dock in Rouge until well into tomorrow night, possibly the following morning. However, beds are onboard, so a nice relaxing rest should be a treat before we dock."

The boat docked and a man with a feathered hat came walking out. When Rose saw the captains face she immediately recognized him. "All aboard, gotta make this one quick!" the captain commanded. "Oh… Rose!" The captain shouted surprised. "You're… you're alive!"

"Good to see you too Paula" Rose replied coolly. "Although I'm surprised to see you parted from the ship that was your pride and joy." Wen and Zack exchanged glances.

"You know Commander Paula?" Wen questioned.

"Does she?" Paula answered for her. "She sailed on none other than the Queen Fury with us to the Island of the Jailed Dragon where her and Dart beat the Sea Dragon!" Paula explained proudly.

"That's quite the achievement" Wen remarked. "All the more reason for us to enlist you."

"You're going to join us?" Paula asked Rose reverently.

"Your part of this group as well?" Rose counter-questioned, somewhat surprised. Paula nodded.

"I'd love to explain it, but how about we do so once the ship sets sail?" the commander advised.

"A sound idea" Wen agreed. Paula led them into the ship, where they all sat in the captain's quarter. The room was no larger than that of a small house room, but it was comfortable enough. It contained a table in the middle with four chairs as well as a small vase of flowers in the centre. It had a set of drawers and a small bed in the corner with various ornaments and trophies that none of them were able to identify.

"Take a seat" Paula offered as Rose, Wen and Zack entered. While Wen and Zack sat, Rose opted to once again stand, leaning on the closest wall. "Please Rose, take a seat and make yourself at home" Paula insisted. Rose shook her head.

"No thanks." Paula just shrugged and took a seat of his own.

"We'll arrive in Rouge in roughly a day and a half, two if the weather is rough" Paula informed them. "It should be a relaxing trip, so feel free to rest up, as I'm sure you all have big jobs ahead of you."

"Two days to make it to the tropical islands?" Rose asked doubtfully. "It should take double that, perhaps more from here if we have to trail the coastline of Tiberoa to the other side."

Paula beamed happily. "Fear not, for we have a route that takes us to the caverns beneath the barrens and straight past Fletz and towards the south-western seas. And don't underestimate this vessel lass, while relatively small and free of many of the frills the Queen Fury would have, it is twice as fast. This beauty was built for just that: Speed. We'll be there before you know it!"

"Isn't it dangerous to pass over the occupied town of Fletz?" Rose wondered.

"Bah!" the captain scoffed. "By the time they notice us we will be far out of reach, even if they control the vessels of Fletz, none can match the sheer speed of Poseidon, Sword of the Ocean!" The last proclaimed name came out with a particular breath of pride.

"'Sword of the Ocean?'" Rose wondered, shaking her head.

"Exactly! The ship cuts the ocean before it into two, as if it no more than a thin piece of parchment. You'll see, soon you'll hail the name of this stupendous vessel!"

Hearing enough of the old man's chatter, he was apt to go on about the ship and sea for the next two days, Rose walked off into her room seeking solitude, which was adjacent to the captain's cabin. Very much the same layout as the captain's quarter, only smaller and not so decorated. A single bed lay in the corner with white sheets neatly made on top of it.

"Guess I'll sleep" she spoke to herself as she plunked herself on the bed without any particular grace. Not long after, she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

It would take longer than expected, two and a half days in fact to dock into Rouge, the time between spent on the ship mainly uneventful. Rose would sleep as much as she could, and when she wasn't she was either eating, admiring the sea, lost in internal thought, or speaking to Zack and Wen, about how their group formed, about how they chose Rouge as their home base and other it's of information she could gather about the resistance. The trip itself was mercifully quick, and as they docked into port Rose had managed to drift into another slumber. She didn't pass up the opportunity to catch up on many hours of lost sleep.

"Rise and shine" a voice beamed happily. Rose opens her eyes slowly.

"We've arrived at Rogue" announced the familiar voice.

Rose lets out a small groan. Her ears were then met with the sound of Zack's chuckle.

"Even as soon as you wake up you manage to still look gorgeous, quite a feat many other women are jealous of I bet" Zack teased.

"I guess it doesn't matter what time it is, your mouth never takes a rest does it?" Rose retorted, her grogginess masking the edge her voice otherwise would have had. Zack continued to laugh.

"I know I've said this before, but you really need to lighten up."

Rose ignored him and walked out. The ship had already docked, the jetty outside was not much larger than the one at Donau. . "Where's the other one?" Rose asked, only sounding mildly interested.

Zack pointed to their newly docked city. Rose nodded, and then exited the ship. She scanned the city, only to find that it had changed as much as Fletz and Donau. That was to be expected, she didn't expect change to reach the isolated village of what had once been home to one of the strongest martial-artists. The buildings were still made of weak wood that she thought would only take as much as a hard gust of wind to topple over, although they had to be more reinforced than they looked to combat the costal winds. It was three levels, only a flight of the same wood stairs the means of ascending or descending. The ocean and far away islands were the only background offered in this area. There were people about, more then she remembered on her last visit. She wondered where their 'HQ' was. Surly they could have picked a more suitable location?

Not long after she arrived, a draft of wind greeted her. It had the scent of sea, sand and… blood.

"Something's wrong" Rose alerted as she instinctively put her hand on her sword. Zack looked at her, confused.

Rose looked around, her attuned senses trying to locate any immediate danger. "Rose, what's wrong?" Zack asked uneasily.

"I smell blood" was her simple reply.

"The tides have changed." Rose swung around to see where the voice came from. I looked like a citizen. He had dark blonde hair, as well as a blonde beard that covered most of his face. He, like many of the locals wore basic blue and green flannel shirt and black shorts.

"Something's coming, and it's coming fast" the man spoke sombrely, as if predicting an ill omen. He was staring intently at the sea around them.

Rose didn't like the atmosphere. Something was coming as the man had sensed and she knew it. "Alert the others, and do it now. I think we're under attack."

"Rose, c'mon, I think you're being a bit too cautious, I mean who is gonna attack us out –"

"Do it now!' Rose barked, interrupting Zack mid sentence. He looked at her puzzled, and then ran up the stairs which led into the higher levels.

The scent of blood became stronger. It seemed to be coming from the beach below. Rose walked down to the sand under Rouge, and began to search for any clues. She circled the entire shoreline, and was ready to head back up until she saw a body in the water not far from where she was now. She approached the body, and immediately identified it as a Fletz soldier by the white plated armour and a large constellation of stars as an emblem.

_How the hell did you make it out here?_ Rose thought.

She bent down in the water, which only came up to her knees. He was gravely injured. He was bleeding from the mouth, which suggested internal injuries, and had many lacerations on his body.

"Are you awake?" Rose asked the seemingly unconscious victim. The solider abruptly came to life.

"Sandora… their… coming…" the man stuttered out between coughs of blood. Rose could barely understand him. He was fading fast, his eyes heavily glazed with the look of death; he was scarcely able to keep them open. "Rouge is… next." The soldier coughed out another splatter of blood, then closed his eyes for the final time.

Rose could hear talk from behind her. She turned around to find Wen and Zack looking on.

"Rose, what's happening?" Wen asked, sounding a little distressed.

"Sandora is planning another attack" Rose replied.

"Where?" Wen questioned uneasily.

"… Here"


	4. Chapter 4: Battle

**Chapter 4: Battle**

Wen had assembled a town defence as quick as he could with the small notice he had, but within a half hour later Sandora made its move, a vessel easily double the size and girth of the Poseidon they travelled on breached the shore. Various projectiles (cannons, harpoons, arrows) rained down on the tropical paradise, many coated in flame, lighting the town ablaze as it struck the ignitable timber. Their destruction was methodical; ballista's first aimed at the base of the town, destroying the support before the flames slowly consuming the higher levels. Soldier then flooded out of the docked Sandorian ship, banners raised high; weapon's brandished as they repeated the invasion of Fletz: slaughter everyone. Many citizens trying to hide who were unarmed were cut down without mercy or regret, mere collateral as they besieged the few armed warriors that attempted to defend the falling town. Those not lucky enough to be granting quick deaths by the pushing soldiers or the initial attack of projectiles were subsequently roasted alive by the living blaze that appeared just as malicious as the army that had sparked it. Rose and the rest of the survivors armed or courageous enough to defend took the fight to Sandora on the beach below.

It quickly became a losing battle. Outnumbered and out equipped, the fragile defences fell, no more than leaves before an oncoming cyclone. When Rose inquired as they assembled their meagre forces as to why there were such little members of their faction in its head quarters, Wen explained that he allocated most of his men into attacking Sandora at its heart, the Black Castle.

"We didn't expect them to continue with the offensive when their own homeland was being invaded" Wen said grimly as he braced himself for combat. "This is another ill omen..."

A certain chill crept into the pit of Rose's stomach. _What if they failed..?. what if they're dead...? _Foolish thoughts she admonished. She would have to focus for the impossible task in front of her: defending.

Rose and the couple of dozen resistances or town members were waiting on the beach as the soldiers poured out of their ship. As hard as they attempted to not let any soldiers slip by to the burning levels above, where those unprotected would be massacred, many did. The numbers were overwhelming, fighting with the discipline and direction of a well drilled force. Divide and conquer was the method they used opposed to a mad rush, which one would expect given the odds of greater numbers. The tactic proved more efficient though, cut off from the support of one another Rose and the few defenders were falling fast, mobbed by enemies that appeared to come from all directions.

It was during this skirmish that Rose began to gain a better (and more fearful) understanding of her Wingly- human hybrid enemies. They only numbered a small percentage of the attacking force, most were mere human Sandorian soldiers (thank god for small blessings Rose thought) but they were as dangerous as three or four. Not only were they more skilful as well as proficient in the art of magic with the abilities to fly, they had somehow gained superhuman endurance beyond both human and Wingly limitations. Wounds that would be fatal to both species only appeared to hinder these half-breeds momentarily, other times they shrugged the injury off entirely. To effectively kill one of these 'genome soldiers' Rose had to either decapitate, sever the spine or cleave their body in two, tasks which proved incredibly difficult given their all-around combat finesse.

Yet stubborn as Rose always was, she would not simply bow down and admit defeat, even with the odds stacked. Rose cut her own path through the horde of enemies, genome and humans alike, her blade dancing with the magnificence and grace of a warrior who had many ages to perfect their art. But as skilful, valiant and determined as she may have been, even she had her limits. Without the support of her Dragoon Spirit to dispatch large contingents of enemies, she had to rely on her sword and wit, both of which after each hard earned kill began to dull bit by bit as her vigour ebbed like a receding tide. She did have one unlikely ally however which she used on several occasions when she was backed into a corner. The burning cinder above, once an enemy that had threatened to incinerate her quickly became a weapon of destruction of her own, on several occasions she would take out one the remaining supports for blazing planks above with a swift kick and cut of her sword, the towering inferno above crashing down on the breach with a mighty thud. Those not quick enough to move or realise parts of the building falling where crushed and burned under a tomb of smouldering lumber. Her best lesson in life was that being cunning and resourceful would save you more than being skilful or powerful.

With what small breathing time she could find, she noticed Zack was having his own difficulties. He wasn't dead at least, that much she should be thankful for she supposed, but he was injured, not mortally for what she could see but enough to be a real hindrance to both his defence and mobility.

His wounds on his arms and torso had reopened, and he had sustain an additional injury to his left leg, the wound on his calf bleeding freely while he did all he could to alleviate the pressure. He was fending off a wave of Sandorian soldiers, almost looking to be overwhelmed, but before Rose could attempt to offer help another group of soldiers (and some genome) barred her path, looking to put an end to her resistance.

Panting heavily, feeling the full effects of exhaustion as perspiration trickled down her brow, she prepared to once again engage the enemy. How long had she been fighting for without pause now? Thirty minutes? An hour? Two? Time was an impossible thing to grasp in the midst of the carnage of war, but judging by how fatigued her heavy limbs felt, she guessed it had been at least an hour, possible two. Glancing at the crumbling ruins behind her seemed to cement that fact, for ruins is all that remained of the tropical city Rouge that was nothing more than a pile of burning embers.

Two more soldiers advanced towards her with menacing intent as she finished dispatching the former group, the leader she identified as perhaps some kind of platoon leader or captain (she noted that the bear of a man's armour was tainted red with blood) with a genome solider following a few steps behind. The captain lunged predictably towards her. She was able to evade his manoeuvre, but the second soldier caught her while she was momentarily off balance in mid-evasion. The result was the genome soldier's mace buried deeply into Rose's exposed abdomen. Although the mace was only relatively small (an iron rod with a crown that divided six-fold at its apex to create a butterfly wing like effect) she was sure it at least cracked two, possibly three of her ribs with the initial impact. Rose dropped immediately, sprawled on the sand, her lungs trying painfully to filter air through the blood that seeped internally from her wounds.

Zack must have saw, or at least heard the impact, His worried cries flooding Rose's one of breathless agony as her body crashed into the sand. He began to run towards his fallen comrade to offer aid and protection. It wasn't going to be that easy, other soldiers intercepted him, not allowing him to assist the now vulnerable warrior who was at the complete mercy of her aggressors.

The genome soldier just glanced down at Rose with nothing but emptiness in its gaze. It wasn't uncommon to see a lack of empathy in the eyes of one about to kill, there were certainly none in her own eyes when she delivered the countless deathblows to others, but that wasn't the disturbing part. What was disturbing was that there was absolutely _nothing _in those eyes, no sadistic glee, no triumphant delight, or surge of adrenaline and will to live (although there was certainly a mixture of all of those things in the eyes of the bloodied captain). There was nothing in their expression to be considered remotely human or alive for that matter. They were as shallow as one staring at a brick wall or plain surface, the slack appearance never wavering before, during or after a battle. The creatures she was battling she was convinced as the edges of her vision began to dim with grey and black, were absolutely soulless.

Sternum busted, on the edge of slipping into unconsciousness or no, Rose still resisted the duo to the bitter end. Body protesting with every movement, Rose managed to roll on to her back and thrust her leg and subsequent foot into the leading soldier's groin. Her blue and black stiletto like boots drove in hard, and the victim of this treatment dropped immediately with a cry of surprised pain

The second soldier, the hybrid with the mace that had injured her not a few moments before would advance again, attempting to bludgeon the downed warrior. This time the genome was unsuccessful, and Rose was able to block the mace with her Rapier. Pain blistered in her arms as well as her torso as the blow crashed against her weapon, the vibrations painful enough to almost coax her body into the oblivion it so desperately craved. Pure force of will kept her from such a fate, and while the genome soldiers appeared to lack any fundamental emotions or feelings, they weren't impervious to surprise. Expecting Rose unable to do so much as move, let alone resist had stunned the soldier into a momentary daze as the mace recoiled off her rapier. Never one to miss an opportunity, Rose used her free hand to grip the stationary hand of the soldier that had till then fell idly by its side and used her remaining strength to pull him down. Despite being caught off guard and off balance, for a fearful moment Rose didn't think the soldier would topple. Resistant as a rock at first, and just as slow to shift, inertia gave way to momentum and eventually pulled the soldier down towards her prone body. With the speed that even a snake would be hard pressed to match, she embedded her blade into his gut during mid fall, it's body impale above hers, looking down at her with the same disinterested expression while she remained on her back for support. Without even a murmur of pain Rose struck out her leg against his torso as leverage so she could pull the blade out of his sternum and kicked him away. The act nearly sapped all her remaining strength, the pain becoming so unbearable she didn't know if she had it in her to move again, but when she spotted the body of the genome she had just skewered began to twitch, she knew she would have to. The blow, enough to kill any other living thing except perhaps a dragon or Giganto, but certainly a human or Wingly, was not enough to stay one of the hybrids. As nimble as her wrecked body would allow she rolled on top of solider before he could get to his feet, and delivered the final blow, a slice across his neck that cut ear to ear.

Before Rose could even think of her next move, the first soldier, the one she had so kindly introduced to her boot had recovered. Vaguely aware yet unable to move her body quick enough the captain, now back on a vertical basis descended upon her from behind, wrapping large arms across her throat. The strangle hold was similar to what you'd see in wrestling, defensive based martial arts akin to the Rouge style that Haschel taught, her neck caught between the bulky nook of the captain's elbow separating his bicep and forearm. Having no extra energy reserved Rose fell completely helpless to the simple but effective choke, the strong pressure across her wind pipe immediately cutting off air circulation. But it was distant, far away somehow, entirely inconsequential to the exploding pain in her abdomen that became ever increasing after forcing herself to exert extra pressure on her surely broken ribs. Death at this point would almost be a release as all she could taste as she tried to take in choked, short breaths of burning air was the tang of her own blood.

Unexpectedly, the pressure suddenly relieved itself and she could breathe again, although at first she found it hard amongst all the coughing and splattering, her body trying to expel the bile and blood that had almost become closer to suffocating her than the choke hold had. When Rose could tilt her head up, she was not surprised to see it was Zack that had saved her life, decapitating the soldier cleanly with his bloodied lance.

"They are withdrawing" Zack informed her, visibly as exhausted as Rose was, although nowhere near in such a dire condition. "The victory may be a small and hollow one, but it's still a victory we now share, and it was against tremendous odds."

Rose didn't really pay much attention. The words seem to go through one ear and out the next. She could vaguely make out amongst her blurred vision the soldier's returning to their ships, fleeing from what could only be described as a massacre. Whether they were really victorious or not, one and probably the most important fact remained: The damage had been done. And so the final thought drifted though her as she finally let herself succumb to the blackness that would give her the much needed reprieve from agony.


	5. Chapter 5: An Evil Scheme

**Chapter 5: An Evil Scheme**

Rose didn't know how long she had slipped into blissful unconsciousness for, only that upon waking up in a solitary bed barley large enough to fit her, the exploding pain that had eclipsed all else had lessened substantially. She still awoke tenderly, her body throbbing with every movement of her mid-section, yet she found as she threw off the white sheets to gain a better view of her foreign surroundings the throb was more than manageable, at least for the moment. Sitting upward however proved to be another battle entirely.

She seemed to be housed in a cabin like area from what she could gather, one window on the other side of the room to the left from where the bed was situated, a rotted out wooden table and chairs, a what once might have been a small sink and a bathroom covered not by a door but by light blue long curtains. She was no longer garbed in her usual dark coloured long shirt and mini skirt with one tight covering her right leg either; she was now dressed in a white plain tank top and with black trousers that were too long for her legs. Her ribs were bundled up tight in bandages that made her feel rather constricted she inspected as she lifted the top to touch the tender skin beneath. It felt bruised, badly at that, but as she traced the lines of her ribs and sternum with ginger hands, pushing where she had to try and gauge the bone damage, she was relieved to find the damage wasn't nearly as bad as she had expected. Perhaps not broken ribs after all, cracked probably, but not broken.

Her first attempt to stand on her feet failed and it only send her crashing to her knees with a painful jolt that ran up her body.

"Damn it to hell" Rose cursed under her breath in pain and exasperation. She leaned her back against the light brown bed head and sat in a prone position, wondering how she was going to get up. Moving too much would be counter-productive, risking further injury to her already weakened abdomen, yet she hated feeling helpless. As she leaned her head back, resting it against the mahogany bed base, mulling over all that happened and would possibly happen in future, she dropped off into another uneasy doze. Given how her body started to lance more pain from her unsuccessful attempt to stand, she welcomed it.

* * *

Zack in the meantime surveyed the surroundings outside, eyes sharp and keen as a predator. Hunting for food had become a priority. So far he snared a gazelle with makeshift traps, when that failed he resorted to throwing his spear in hopes to gouge one. He was met with more success with the latter method than the former, although he had spend nearly an hour chasing the damned thing to get his kill along with his weapon back that had in lodged in its rear.

Zack had also gathered some local plants and berries to compliment the meat, a task which proved just as arduous as stalking the gazelle. Despite his familiarity with the grassland region around the tropical islands that melted into the all encompassing sea in every direction, sifting through the poisonous or non-edible flora became tedious yielding slow results. After Zack had gained what he thought would be enough for the two of them to eat for the day, he rubbed his burning face with his hand in an attempt to gave his face some respite from the burning sun that sat at the midway point in the sky and sat a moment, glancing at the serene scenery before him. They were now a few miles southbound of the ruined city, housed in a small cottage that may have once been a small outpost of refuge, although by the state of most of the demolished architecture besides the cabin Rose was slumbering in Zack guessed would have been an age ago since they were anything but an ancient remains. Despite that the lush greenery falling into the deep blue of the sea appealed to him, as did the smell of sea salt.

Zack did all he could to treat Rose's injuries, however his knowledge in first aid was minimal at best. All he could do was clean and dress the wound. She had no serious internal damage as far as he could tell, the bleeding from her mouth had stopped and while she sustain rather nasty bruises and perhaps some fractures, she was a lot better off than what Zack had thought the worst case scenario when she had fallen unconscious on the sandy beach.

Images of the beach then plagued his mind, a scene of the worst massacre he had ever witnessed, and he had witnessed plenty in his short life. The water and once yellow sand alike were stained with red, bodies both mutilated and burnt black littered atop the red like a sick kind of focal point to a grim painting. He felt sick remembering it, had actually been sick when the rush of battle had left him and he had time to examine just how brutal the aftermath was.

_It will do no good to dwell on it _he thought bitterly as he got to his feet. Trying to push the ghastly images out of his mind if only temporarily (they would visit him for plenty of time to come in his dreams both sleeping and awake), he moved back towards the cottage with his final harvest, focus shifting on preparing the meal both he and Rose would soon need.

* * *

Black Castle Kazas, heart of the Sandorian Empire and bastion of the seeming dark and largest castle in Serdio that stood like a threatening force somehow removed from the city that resided below. As black as the darkest night, the castle that twisted skyward like a serpent had the appearance of something demonic and cruel, even though not all its rulers were so.

Within highest level of the castle, separated by many long corridors and oil powered elevators was the Royal Chamber, a giant room lit by a rows of faint braziers on either side, a dominating throne the only thing of note in an otherwise rather empty throne room. Yet it was a truly magnificent throne, demanding the attention of anyone who could place eyes on it, it's steel, black spine spanning almost towards the apex of the chamber. Encrusted with many jewels and lined with silver and golden trimmings, the throne appeared as dark and dominating as the castle that housed it. Yet it had not always been so, although always gloomy and dark it had been home to a previous king who was, at his core, very human. Pictures and trophies had been displayed along the empty halls, but that was no more. With the dawn of a new king, the Royal Chamber morphed with it to reflect the stark change in personality.

Quick to raise when Sandora were leaderless and hence aimless, much like a body without its head, then veteran commander tactician and war hero Rommel Hytas had risen to power quickly. With notions of a new utopia, one where the underbelly of the city would no longer go uncared for, where peace could be a reality and lifelong soldiers able to return to their forgotten families, Hytas was quickly hailed by the people as a savoir of Sandora, the mark of a much needed change to the war-ridden country that had thrived on it for so long.

Yet this was all of course a mask, like many dictator rising to the top, he was an ambitious man above all (although his ambitions were not all his), and shrewdly so. Using the devastation of the previous war to fuel his campaign with false hopes and promises, his real character became known all too late. More ruthless and cruel than the previous emperor Doel was at his worst, Hytas capitalised on the false hopes of its citizens and based his rulership on harsh domination and utter control. The country itself was still no better, poorer than it ever had been in fact, and the promised peace era was shattered when news of his only adversary, the king of Basil Albert had fallen deathly ill. Hytas immediately went on the attack, conscripting many soldiers new and old to a new war after the country was still reeling from its former one in an effort to seize utter control of Serdio. Cursed it seemed with dark rulers bent on world control, Sandora was once more plunged into an age of war and uncertainty.

Yet as powerful as Hytas was, even he had his superiors, superiors who made sure he made it to royalty. A brown cloaked figure (only his steel boots were visible) stood in the throne room with only king, who was not as he usually was sitting on his giant throne, but standing, staring at the vacant wall in front.

Hytas himself was an aged man, dark gray hair that falling shoulders like a silver mane. In addition to this was a silvery moustache that curled towards his nose. He was often called a fox, due to the way his eyes slanted, resembling that of the after mentioned creature and on account of his sly tactics he had used to gain the upper hand of battle. His stature was tall and thin, although not unhealthily so just thin. He was however not picked as a leader for his physical prowess but for his mind, which when put to use could turn the tide of a losing battle almost immediately.

"You failed to entirely decimate Rogue" the figure draped in a long cloak stated softly. His tone (for it was a masculine pitch) was not disrespectful yet it held the fine edge of well veiled disappointment. Hytas noticed it immediately and turned around to face the stranger.

"I wouldn't say it was a complete failure, Rouge after all lies in ruins" Hytas answered waspishly, walking over to sit on his throne. He knew where this would be headed, and while he was aware of the powers his superiors held, he wasn't about to be lectured like a child.

The cloaked man remained entirely still.

"This is… vexing" the man continued. "I could only assume that an army that was capable of annihilating Fletz, the capital city of Tiberoa would have absolutely no difficulty in destroying a much smaller port town. Many survivors escaped, not least of all the warriors you were sent to kill as a priority."

"Well… the resistance we ran into were more sturdy then had had initially anticipated" Hytas replied, irritation leaving his voice. What replaced it was a calm, hospitable demeanour, although what he felt was far from it. "After all, with all due respect, the group was once founded by you."

Hytas didn't know how the cloaked figure would take his last remark, didn't particularly care, he was in a foul mood of late, but the king was surprised when the shrouded figure inclined his body into a low bow.

"You speak true Hytas. I guess I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed if the group I once forged fell so easily" the mysterious man agreed.

"That's _king _to you" Hytas amended without the authority or conviction he would have liked. The figure bowed again.

"Of course, my apologies king." The remark sounded somehow mocking to the king's ears, but he let it slide. "Never mind about that. Your new mission I am going to give you is a much more simpler one, however I'd like you to be as discreet as possible about it" Hytas nodded in agreement. "We now confirmed that Rose is indeed alive. I'd like you to send your best assassins in to exterminate her"

"So she is alive eh?" Hytas asked, although it was more of a rhetorical question. "It will be done sir" Hytas promised after a brief but uneasy silence.

"See to it that it is. I don't want any more failures."

"Yes sir" Hytas once again agreed, although he pontificated the sir with a hint of scorn much the same way the figure had done with his prefix earlier.

"We do have information that Rose is without her Dragoon Spirit and sustained heavy injuries during the battle on Rogue" the dark man informed.

"You mean she was fighting on Rogue?" Hytas questioned, visibly unaware that she was indeed fighting.

"Yes. She hasn't gone far, not with the injuries she received, however do not underestimate her. Although she may seem like she will be an easy target, she has been around for eleven thousand years, and as a result has become extremely resourceful. After all, she was part of the group that defeated Melbu Frahma" The mystery figure warned. "The other factor to watch out for is she is guarded by one of the faction's best warriors."

"Zack?" Hytas asked, knowing full well the answer he would receive. The cloaked man nodded.

"If possible, I'd rather him spared. I have hope for the boy yet, but if unavoidable then you know what to do. Rose's death is you're primary concern at this point, as she will be a major factor in later events if unchecked, so I would like her dealt with now, while we still can."

"Of course, It will be done" Hytas replied, bowing his head slightly. The figure nodded and then exited the room. Once he did the king let out a pent up sigh of relief he hadn't realised he was holding. It would be done alright, however perhaps not in the method the disrespectful little runt would expect. Yes, he was not a mere pawn to be moved around a chessboard, he was the king of the strongest dominion in Serdio after all.

* * *

Rose awoke from her uneasy slumber a few hours later and was pleased to find she felt marginally more refreshed. The pain of course still lingered, would continue to do so for plenty of days ahead she suspected, but on the whole, with a good amount of sleep and plenty of time for her body to rest, she felt much better.

She turned her head over to her side and soon noticed a new, although not unpleasant aroma pervade her small room. Sniffing the air a couple of times, she concluded it was the smell of cooked meat that invaded her nostrils. It made her stomach churn in delight. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so famished.

Rose decided she'd try to stand up once more, although this time using the bed behind her as a brace. Moving from her knees to her feet slowly as she balanced herself on the beams of the bed with both her hands, she was met with a great deal more success. She had to regulate her breathing into faster, shallows breaths opposed to the deeper intakes of air to avoid further stress on her ribs, but with much focus and determination she was standing, a sense of triumph washing over her.

"Well done" a voice intruded, her mind so deep in concentration it had nearly startled her off her ginger feet. Leaning against the doorway Zack stood with an amused smile, enjoying the spectacle. Realising he had likely just witnessed her ungraceful climb to a vertical base; Rose couldn't completely hide a flush of embarrassment. To further her chagrin, Zack noticed that as well.

"And here I was thinking you were incapable of such expressions as embarrassment." Rose narrowed her eyes towards him, her lips thinned into an unamused scowl. "Although it's a rather strange thing to be embarrassed over, I mean who after all do you think it was that dressed your injures?"

At first slow to catch, Rose quickly understood the implications of his comment. Turning her face away to hide any further flushes, Rose felt her ribs protest at the sudden motion. It was a sharp pain, but it managed to take the focus away from images that sprung in her mind of Zack, a near stranger, having access to her exposed form. Zack in the meantime found the situation all the more hilarious, and as the pain dulled her cheeks reddened again, not with humiliation but fury. It was one thing that it happened, that much was unavoidable, when you were seriously injured you weren't spared the decency of modesty and that was fine, but to throw it in her face for his own amusement? He was lucky she wasn't able to hit him. Zack seemed to sense this to and his laughter died.

"It's okay, I covered you where I could" he explained, mirth still bubbling. It did little to ease her irritation, but she remained silent, not giving him the pleasure of being baited. "Look, how about I make it up to you with a delicious meal eh?"

The prospect of food, being momentarily forgotten reminded her of just how hungry she was. Cursing her human weakness she relented, turning toward him, eyes narrowed and expressionless.

Zack moved towards her, and she moved her body back a fraction defensively.

"Easy" he coaxed. "I'm just going to help you walk to the next room where the food is. You can barely stand without support; I doubt you'll be able to walk."

Faced with no other choice, Rose once more relented, letting his arm drape under her shoulders softly so she could fall on him for support. Slowly, step by step they moved into the main living area of the cabin, where a bubbling pot sat over a fire, the odour becoming so strong it caused Rose's stomach to grumble impatiently. With no tables or chairs, Zack had to sit her down on the rotting timber below, close to the pot. Zack moved to the opposite side and gave the pot a final stir with a makeshift spoon.

Zack had obviously noticed Rose's stare fixated on the food. "It's a sort of Beef Stew" Zack announced proudly. "Caught Gazelle for the meat and used herbs and veggies to create the soup. Should be ready in a few moments"

"I don't think I've ever been so hungry" Rose admitted weakly. Zack couldn't help but snicker.

"Don't worry, there's enough here to feed an army. And I just happen to be a very highly skilled cook!" More pride beamed from his boast, putting the exclamation point on the highly skilled.

Rose couldn't stifle a small smirk, her lips curving ever so slightly, which surprised Rose as much as it did Zack.

"That's got to be the first time I've actually seen you even look like smiling" Zack beamed happily.

Rose made quick work of the smile, making it vanish almost as fast as it had materialized. But that was enough. Even though Zack didn't her for long, he understood how rare the occasion was, and even if it was only for an instant, Zack also understood what it meant for Rose to accomplish a smile.

"You know, you should smile more often. It really softens your face, makes you like less..." Zack mulled over what word to use for a moment. "Harsh."

"Don't talk such nonsense" Rose responded, not sounding convincingly as irritated as she would have liked. To Rose's utter surprise and total horror, she could feel her cheeks beginning to burn for the third time this evening. Rose slowly turned her head away from Zack, as if to glance out one of the side windows that spread into the grasslands outside. Zack had witnessed her chagrin enough for today, and while she had valid reasons for the former she didn't want him noticing her blushing over such silly comments. She reprimanded herself mentally for letting such comments affect her so easily. She reasoned it was simply lack of food and the stress of her injuries.

"How are you feeling?" Zack broke in, disrupting her mental lecture.

"Hungry and sore" Rose replied unhappily.

"Well, you're ribs did sustain a rather vile beating. Unfortunately I don't have the equipment nor the knowledge to treat your wounds further" Zack spoke apologetically.

"It's fine. It was my fault to begin with. I was careless" Rose retorted.

"Looked like to me you were exhausted." Zack stopped stirring and began to pour the meal into two separate bowls he had found within the old used drawers, or at least that's what they appeared to be. He washed them at the nearby stream to be sure they were rid of anything that may have attached itself over its underused years. "You seem to be pushing yourself too hard" Zack spoke, passing Rose a bowl full of soup.

"I am well aware of my body's limits" Rose said as she peered into the bowl that was discharging enticingly hot vapour. The soup was a yellow coloured liquid, housing small chunks of meat and vegetables.

"Whatever you say. Oh, and tell me what you think of my top notch cooking" Zack requested eagerly, grabbing a few pieces of meat with his hands and sending them into his mouth.

"Don't we get knife and forks?" Rose asked a little surprised.

Zack shook his head, and swallowed his mouth full of meat. "Nope, sorry. It was hard enough to scrub up bowls. Going to have use the hands god gave you."

Rose shrugged indifferently, too hungry to delay her meal any longer. Her stomach craved food, and being this close to food made every second she wasn't eating seem like an eternity. She brought the bowl up to her mouth and began to take a few sips of soup from the bowl.

"So what do ya think?" Zack asked, hoping for a positive reply.

"Not bad" Rose said. Zack smiled in triumph.

"Aren't I just the best cook?"

"Well, as hungry as I am, I reckon I'd eat just about anything, so I can't give you an unbiased critique." Zack's smile faded.

"Way to wreck the moment."

Rose felt another almost uncontrollable urge to smile, however this time she suppressed it. She decided showing Zack one smile would be enough for today.


	6. Chapter 6: An Unexpected Gift

**Chapter 6: An Unexpected Gift.**

As the days melted into nights, and nights into days, Rose's body mended itself at a speed that appeared almost inhuman. Rose had explained that over eleven-thousand years of constant damage and repair had hardened her body in the way that hands calloused after years of rough labour, but Zack remained silently dubious. Increased longevity or not, the body could only tear and mend so much before damage became permanent. Zack was sure some other force was at work with her speedy recovery, perhaps magical perhaps not, but Zack chose not to voice these thoughts, at least for the moment. She was a Dragoon Knight after all, and what's to say her mysterious abilities ended with agelessness? She was a puzzling woman indeed, the more Zack managed to glean about her obscure personality, the more questions it prompted.

Four days had elapsed since they had settled in the Rouge outskirts, and judging by the suns close proximity to the threatening storm clouds breasting the horizon from the east, it wouldn't be long until dusk fell, shifting towards a fifth daytime. Rose was walking on her own without aid in three, although she was still very ginger and wasn't able to help with anything more than cooking to Zack's stubborn behest and her helpless frustration. For her the days and nights passed slowly, most of it sleeping or lying awake restless, and when not she spared a few conversation with Zack. Most had been about business, although one particular topic of interest was his comrade Wen. She didn't see him at the forefront of the battle for the most part, and when she asked where he was now he could only offer indistinct answers.

"After he spent most of the battle trying to save the unarmed or wounded, he came down to the shore to see you half dying" Zack said dourly. Upon any mention of the battle his mood turned dark and Rose only then began to realise how from her, a ruthless creature that beared no thoughts or regrets for the lives she took he truly was. A soft kind of innocence Rose had reflected not yet beat out of him by a lifetime of bloodied skirmishes. It wouldn't be long though if he continued on this war-torn path."After that he left with a few troops to try and get in contact with the men situated in Kazas."

Rose thought it rather convenient, but said nothing.

"He suggested we make base here while you recover until we're ready to move and get back in contact with him to plan our next move."

Appearing at least somewhat satisfied with that line of conversation, Rose moved on to another. "Why didn't you transform during the battle?"

Zack rubbed his head sheepishly "I errr... couldn't. I tried, trust me I really did, but as of now I can't transform on a whim. It seems to either happen... or not." Zack shrugged, feeling somehow foolish.

Rose let out a knowing sigh. "If we get the time I'll have to teach you I suppose. It does take a certain mastery to transform at will; it feeds of the users emotions. Adrenaline, the will to live, anger, hate and despair, the spirit feeds of all of these emotions to fuel the transformation."

Zack let out a small laugh when he realised he was being lectured again. Rose appeared to take some kind of offense when he explained it.

"You are in possession of a powerful tool, yet it means nothing if it cannot be relied upon. If you are serious about going head to head with an army that far outnumbers your own, its tools like this you will need to master."

"Yes yes" Zack said, waving it off with a flick of his hand. "However you are in no condition to teach so instead how about we settle for some food?"

Rose, shaking her head and wondering how she got paired up with such a fool, could only sigh once more.

Besides that nothing outside polite banter was exchanged between them, most of it of course initiated by Zack who tried to get a better understanding of his new companion.

Also on the third day Rose had the luxury of bathing in the nearby stream, although Zack was wary of the idea of her wondering off alone. After a not so gentle reminder that despite her apparent fragile frame her tolerance for pain was as good as her body's ability to recover he relented and allowed her to soak in the small mouth of water that connected to the salty sea. She preferred fresh water of course, it was less irritating on the skin and was usually home to much less malign sea predators, but the salt was good for her still closing wounds and she really wasn't in a position or mood to be picky. Water was water, salty or fresh, and it felt heavenly on her sticky, unclean body.

In that very same stream Zack had made work of cleaning her blood-soaked clothes. He was prepared for an arduous task he would likely not complete to perfect, but to his surprise the dried blood, dirt and sand washed off in the water with ease, as if he was washing no more than mild dirt stains. He had wondered how despite all her gruesome battles her garments had remained as fresh new, and he thought he found an answer. They too must have been somehow altered not to stain or fray.

As the fourth day came to a close Rose had conversed with Zack about preparations to leave the following morning. Zack was against the idea to begin with, she was still visibly under duress from her beaten ribs and if they ran into any kind of complications that had to be resolved by combat she would run the risk of further damage or earning new injuries entirely. Rose was firm in reasoning, unable to shake off a foreboding feeling of an ambush. The way the tress shifted in her peripherals and the sudden stop start of native wildlife of late gave her the unshakable feeling of being somehow watched. As diligent as she had become in keeping aware, particularly as she bathed in the river she was not able to find any concrete evidence of her recent sensitivity, but she knew it true all the same. Some things were just beyond explanation. Zack was not so easily persuaded, and the best Rose could achieve on this particular exchange was a re-evaluation of the situation in the morning. Rose had threatened to leave on her own if he was unwilling to follow, but both she and Zack knew it was an empty threat, she was vulnerable without any kind of backup if things turned sour and while it was true she had braved harder journeys in worse circumstances in the past; her stubbornness did not exceed her practicality. Sure they were being somehow monitored, perhaps waiting for a chance to attack them separated (although she thought her trip to the stream would have been a golden opportunity if there had ever been one); she would be foolish to rush off headstrong into a region she was unfamiliar with. Whether she liked it or not (she certainly never admitted it aloud) without unrestrained mobility she would have to rely on Zack for protection.

I the end what prompted them to leave was not of their own violation. Greeted by an unexpected (and dangerously unknown) visitor, this stranger would prove to be the catalyst they needed.

Zack had spotted her as she approached a distances of a couple of hundred yards away. Zack had been near the opened doorway fastening the makeshift hide rope around the base of his spear, an idea Rose had given him after he nearly lost his pole arm during his first hunting expedition, and before that he had been sharpening his barbed tip. Rose sensed more than saw the other presence approach and joined Zack at the front of the cabin.

"Stay behind me" Zack warned, his grip tightening on his weapon. He rose to his full height after hunkering down earlier, watching the stranger with open distrust.

When she was no more than a few feet away her appearance became clearer. She was that of a kind of dark assassin, a piece of dark cloth obscuring her face under her eyes below leather garb fitted over her body that covered her neck forearms, but interestingly fell short of her navel, exposing a small section of deeply tanned skin. The chest piece bore an assortment of strange knots and markings, completely exotic to both Zack and the former Dragoon Knight's eyes. Bracers and fingerless gloves of the same make covered the second half of her arms, and as their eyes lowered to her legs and footwear what they saw was no less foreign. Thick hide leggings with light fur puffing out like an animal's mane surrounded her waste and the tops of her boots, completing her strange outfit. On a closer glance Rose thought she looked more a huntress than an assassin, but she was cautious all the same. She had no visible weapons on her, but Rose didn't doubt for a moment she had them, likely strapped inside her chest or legs by the many rawhide buckles that criss-crossed her frame like an elaborate pattern.

Before she could move into striking distance, were that her aim, Zack pushed forward, bringing the stranger to a premature stop. By the long fall of ebon hair that was tied into a high pony tail, Zack concluded it was a female. This information did not let him relax, as Zack gave a quick glance behind him to Rose, he had come to realise women were just as dangerous, if not more so than men.

"I pray you're no enemy, but forgive me, for I'll have to treat you as one, least till you prove otherwise" Zack greeted with an air of his usual nonchalance. Under that however was a man far from it, a man ready to strike at the first sign of danger. Perhaps with a danger sense not as keen as Rose's, he knew when to be cautious when the situation warranted and this one clearly did. While Zack was still trying to gauge if and how much of a threat the woman could or would be, Rose was able to analyse all that and more after a brief meeting of eyes. Her hazel watch, seemingly warm at a glance, hid a much darker demeanour beneath. Rose had gleaned past her facade a moment when Zack started the verbal proceedings, and what she saw she liked very little: The eyes of one who's no stranger to bloodshed or death, the eyes of a one who was very calculated and deliberate. None of this was evidence that she was necessarily sinister or even an enemy of course, but she hoped Zack had seen it as well and would redouble his caution. As she stood a safe distance behind Zack, hand on the sword that she grabbed on her way out, she was ready to support him if the situation broke down. Yet that didn't mean she wanted to incite the battle, if possible she hoped (although was somehow doubtful) that a struggle could be avoided. It would do neither of them favours to get themselves killed.

The woman held up her hands in an apparent gesture of no ill-meaning. "I am neither friend nor foe" she responded, her accent foreign yet not without the silky softness of an experienced negotiator. "What I am however is both a messenger and a delivery person."

Zack held his piercing stare a moment longer. "Sorry for being somewhat presumptuous but may I ask how you found us?"

The woman shrugged offhandedly. "The same way anyone does. I have sources and tracking people you might say is what I do. But that's neither here nor there, as you may have guess I am a lady of the shadows, and being so far away from said shadows, I feel rather exposed. So I'd like to make this short."

Zack remained uncharacteristically silent. The woman appeared to take that as her queue to continue.

"Firstly the information. Sandora as of late has not been acting of its own accord."

Zack stiffened a moment before falling back into his pseudo-contentedness.

_Good, keep yourself as hard to read as possible _Rose thought as she continued to examine the visitor for any falsities.

"Sandora you see, it's... or should I say _we're _having some internal struggles at the moment. The King is being forcefully manipulated into actions at the behest of some rather powerful entities, entities that are strong enough to bend our King's will to their own, which is by no means an easy feat. Once a decorated war veteran, he assumed the throne with hopes to change Sandora for the better, and was well on his way until the intervention of a group that would not see the control of one kingdom but all kingdoms around Endiness."

Zack let out a nervous laugh. "Why should we believe anything you, as the enemy, would say?"

The woman's gaze turned cold, and Zack found it hard to suppress a chill that ran down his spine.

"You don't _have _to trust a word I say of course; however I do come baring a gift that I hope will show my sincerity." Her attention shifted to Rose briefly, who stood reticent, arms folded. They locked in what Zack thought was some kind of stare down, neither blinking nor filching. In the end the stranger was the first to look away, turning her attention back on Zack. "I am a part of the Sandorian army, and that may make us enemies on paper... however I hope you, as a part of a resistance of your own, would understand. We are only taking aggressive measures of late because we are forced to. If we can stop the man pulling the strings, there will be no reason for us to war, and to that end, our objectives are one in the same."

Zack was at a loss. His cool demeanour quickly crumbled like a fissure in the earth, revealing his internal confusion. Rose saw this and decided that the stranger had targeted Zack for negotiations for a reason that had nothing to do with his position within the resistance, if she even knew of such a thing. No, Zack was specifically targeted because he would be easier to manipulate. Sensing this, and perhaps the fact Zack would need assistance, Rose pushed forward, inserting herself into the conversation.

"This 'man' you speak of, I'm assuming you know exactly who this so called puppeteer is?" Rose said, her eyes a shrewd kind of cunning beneath the icy stare. The exotic woman seemed to detect this at once, her expression shifting slightly. Instead of a cat playing with a mouse it was now a cat facing another cat.

"...Not exactly" she responded. "The details a murky, the mastermind is keeping his identity secret with the promise of death to all those who know it. But I do know two things: he is powerful, very powerful, and he goes by the alibi of Cloke. Something to do with the fact he is always hidden behind a veil or cloak I assume."

Zack appeared ready to comment, but the stranger silence him with a raise of her hand. "My time is running out, I cannot risk this exposure much longer. The other thing I'm here to tell you is that Sandora is targeting you specifically Rose."

Rose raised an eyebrow to this but said nothing.

"You have taken the attention of this Cloke, and subsequently he has put a bounty on you, the death-on-sight kind of bounty. As we speak an elite squad of assassins are inbound, hoping to take advantage of your inured state."

"How can they know where we are and the state Rose is in!" Zack cried frantically.

"We have informants and sources everywhere, even ones within your ranks. I would suggest you comb through your resistance when you get the chance. In any event this, above all else I suggest you trust, lest you wish to join the already piling corpses of Rouge."

"And you're telling us all this because?" Rose inquired, already knowing the answer.

"Because we cannot act directly against Cloke. He is a smart man above all else, and has put forward persuasive measures that make sure we can't. You however, can. We will help where we can, subtly, from the shadows, when it's safe, but ultimately we want you to eliminate him for us. Do that and we'll cease our attempts to conquer Endiness and begin repenting for our atrocities." The woman sighed, looking off into the distance. "Our people suffer, and we would as much as anyone else like to end this pointless bloodshed." She dipped into her leather waste kit and fished out what appeared to be a kind of black stone.

"This is my parting gift, a token of my sincerity in the matter. I know we will never become allies, but if you help us in this goal, you'll be meeting your own, will you not? Remember, we want the same thing." She placed the item on the ground and took a few steps backwards. "Depending on how the situation pans out, will may or may not meet again. For both our sakes, I hope for the former." Her hand dove into her satchel, pulled another round object and threw it against the earth, a plume of smoke erupting on impact. Once the smoke dissipated, she was gone.

"Well that was uhh… weird" Zack commented after the women had vanished. Rose was not listening however. Her gaze was fixed on the item that the women had place not a few feet away from them, a dark stone small enough to fit in her palm shining brightly.

"The Dark Dragoon Spirit" she murmured in disbelief. She walked towards it, appearing to pause a moment, as if transfixed, then hunkered down to touch it. Her hand also paused a moment in front of the orb, as if uncertain whether she should touch it or not, then she grasped it firmly, the stone seeming to come to life as it pulsed a brilliant dark glow.

For the first time ever since Rose parted with the Dragoon Spirit, she felt complete, whole, united.

The moment she lost her Dragoon Spirit she felt she had also lost a part of herself with it, no, more than a part, she felt she had lost herself completely. Reunited with that piece, she felt herself, she felt proper, she felt like _her_. A feeling of euphoria filled her every sense as the dark orb continued to pulse brighter and brighter, as if it too mirrored Rose's feeling. Perhaps it did, after all the stone does hold the spirit of a dragon.

A smile crept across Rose's face, however this one was very different from the one she had shown Zack a few days ago. This smile had a sinister touch to it, wicked almost in the way a cruel person might smile before inflicting pain on a hapless soul unfortunate enough to garner it's attention. The smile made Zack feel uneasy, like catching a glimpse of an evil someone had managed to hide. It made Zack realise how little he really knew about her, which also triggered another disconcerting thought: Rose's malicious side likely contained a whole lot more malevolence than he'd care to find out. But if they kept adventuring together he would find out, and the idea both scared and dismayed him.

"I thought you said the spirit no longer recognised you?" Zack asked anxiously. While the grin had faded, the look of dark intent etched into her eyes hadn't.

"So did I" Rose replied, putting it back into her pack where it belonged.

"Hm. What do you make of the woman? Do you think this makes her trustworthy?"

Rose let out a humourless laugh. Zack couldn't help but notice even her laugh was starting to sound wicked.

"If anything this makes me suspect her motives all the more. She was open, _too _open, so no; I certainly don't trust her, fortunate gift or no. She hopes to use us I think, probably kill us when our use runs out as well. Her eyes, try as hard as she might to hide it, show the scars of many years of calculated bloodshed.'

"So what are we going to do?" Zack wondered.

"For now we'll have to believe her. We'll act oblivious until we have something else to go on. I do not plan on being her pawn for long however. This huge political struggle has been blown way out of proportion, and if what that women says is correct, then this Cloke is behind it. And, if she is telling the truth, I wish to find out why he wants me dead" Rose answered.

Zack's recollection was sparked as an important piece of the woman's information crossed his mind. "Oh! What about the assassin squadron!" Zack said sounding alarmed.

To be honest, Rose had momentarily forgotten about that vital piece of information. She considered the question for a moment, and then answered. "I think we should move up a bit, and then set up an ambush."

"You sure? I mean you can't fight in your condition" Zack protested.

"Don't worry, this evens it up a little" Rose replied as she grabbed her Dragoon Spirit and held it out in front of her. It began to resonate with its dark brilliance again, and then Zack's Red Eyed Dragoon Spirit did the same.

"Well, we better get moving" Zack encouraged, walking inside to pack the last of the provisions.

* * *

The exotic women had backtracked a few miles, where she stood on a small rocky cliff near the mountain ranges that surrounded the outside of the small island. A Sandorian elite, covered head to toe in an array dark garments that made clear his status, walked up behind her. "So, did they buy it?" he questioned eagerly.

"For the moment I think so" she said her mind in deep thought. "I doubt that will last long though, the woman, Rose, is wary to say the least. Much more perceptive than the buffoon she was associating with."

The elite acknowledged the comment with a grunt.

"Report to the king that, as of my own analysis, I don't think we'll be able to play her as much as he hoped, but as long as she thinks Cloak is the target, then it doesn't really matter."

The Sandorian general nodded. "Anything else to report ma'am?" he asked.

"… No, that is all." The general nodded, saluted then walked off to report to Hytas.

Yet as he left, she couldn't shake the feeling of unease that crept into her mind like an obstinate nail that refused to be removed. _I think we are greatly underestimating her _she thought be anxiously. _Dangerously so, giving her back the spirit may yet turn out to be a foolish move..._

Trying her best to cast away such thoughts she began to move back towards the small camp they had set up. It wasn't her business to question the king's thinking after all, and the one thing she could never doubt was the king's brains for strategy. The plan would work, and if it didn't, King Hytas would surely have a back up.

Her confidence restored, the exotic woman began to move towards the second phase of their plan.


	7. Chapter 7: Support

**Chapter 7: Support**

Rose and Zack moved a few miles north of where they had camped, ever diligent of the supposed oncoming ambush that was to lie ahead. They found a suitable spot where they could waylay (they didn't have the equipment or the time if that exotic women was correct to properly prepare traps), their main advantage the element of surprise which was enough to win battles if used appropriately. The area they decided on was covered by long grass surrounded by dense thickets, ideal for the kind of hidden hit and run tactics Rose was intending to utilize, the thick scrubs offering plenty of hidden protection. One noticeable feature was amongst all the grass and heavy trees and plants were some sort of abandoned shrine of sorts it appeared. It was an area covered by five large gray elliptical stones that rose a few feet towards the sky, an assortment of strange markings or scrawl etched upon each stone. They formed a sort of circle, a small rocky alter within the middle, perhaps once used for some kind of sacrifice or ritual. It was within that centre near the alter inside the cover of the large stones that they crouched low in the grass, waiting patiently for any incoming hostilities.

The day had began its wane into twilight, the sun still scorching from high above, but it wouldn't be long until it would begin it's inevitable disappearance under the watery horizon that stretched out to the west. They had been waiting for a considerable amount of time, and Zack almost thought the warning false. But true to the stranger's word, although a little later than Zack had expected, a platoon of dark soldiers moved through the clearing from the thickets towards the setting sun in the west with the silent grace of a stalking cat. Rose could count five of them, leather armour so light and well strapped they made no noise despite the thickness of the grass, in fact they moved so carefully they almost appeared to hover leaving no prints behind them. They were all armed with various weapons, a couple with swords, one with dual daggers and one with a fletched bow.

"See that one with the bow and arrow at the back?" Rose asked Zack in a whisper, signalling him with her head as they hugged one of the stones. Zack nodded.

"I want you to take out that one first, while I keep the others busy."

"You sure you're up to it?" Zack asked concerned.

"I already told you I can handle it. Now, make sure you take out that bowman" Rose urged as she drew steel.

"Yeah, got it covered" Zack complied.

"Okay, on my signal, attack. And be careful, they look crafty." One of them bent low and examined a noticeable indentation in the long grass which suggested resent trespass. He alerted the rest of his crew to the print and they all drew their own arms, their faces hidden beneath a thick mask as they branched out and searched the area.

Rose wasted no more time. Drawing her purple Dragoon Spirit, she cupped it with her free hand, closed her eyes and let a familiar sensation flood her body. A ball of black darkness engulfed her frame for a few moments, forks of what appeared to be multi-coloured spikes of electricity passing around it as a grunt of effort resounded from within. Then it faded, leaving a fully transformed Rose in its wake, who never thought she'd be so happy or relieved to be back in her familiar suit of dark armour. It was a little heavier than she remembered, although that could perhaps be accounted for her injured ribs that protested under the added weight of her bulky chain of magical mesh that covered nearly all of her body.

The act of course had drawn the attention of the surrounding assassins, but Rose had already taken to the skies, her broad, translucent wings gleaming in the dying sunlight.

Rose's first victim fell quickly and effortlessly. Still caught in the transition of surprise to dawning realisation (she had an idea her in her Dragoon state was something they were not expecting) Rose glided down and cleaved one of her opponents head clean off their shoulders. The body remained standing for a few moments longer before it fell in a collage of red and flecked white, then she retreated to the air once more, out of range of all but one of their squad members. Still gathering themselves from the sneak attack, Rose slew a second victim in the form of a ball of black flame that swelled in her hand to the size of a large rock and hurled it towards a second assassin who was unable to evade. His body combusted into a fountain of dark flame that charred his body in seconds.

The three of them left had by now gathered their wits and assumed a kind of triangle formation. The archer drew an arrow and notched it with impressive speeds, but got no further when he felt the forced entry of something sharp and somehow hot. Zack had managed to sneak up from behind and drive his barbed spear through the centre of the archer's back, the third soldier to fall in the space of no more than thirty seconds. Rose dipped again for another assault, her blade tearing through the soft flesh and brittle bone of another assailant's chest cavity with ease despite her burning ribs, and he too fell, left to die a handful of minutes later. Only one enemy remained.

Or so they thought.

What Rose did not plan on (she would later admonished herself for it) was the few soldiers that were supporting the main squad from the shadows behind. Three hurtling kunai flew towards her at breakneck speeds, and although he reaction time was sharp, it wasn't sharp enough. Coupled with the fact she thought she had reinjured parts of her sternum she wasn't quick enough avoid them all. Two of the three small blades crashed into her sides, and while not strong enough to penetrate the thick layer of armour that protected her, it still struck her with what felt like the blunt force of a hammer. It momentarily drove the wind out of her, her already throbbing abdomen flaring into a sharp pain that left her momentarily disabled.

More ranged instruments shot towards Zack, but he was able to ward them off with an impressive display of fanning his spear in a fast arcing motion. "In the trees!" Zack alerted while repelling another wave of deadly projectiles.

Rose saw one on the tree above her, sneaking in for a blind attack. Rose flew up and hurled her blade towards the attacker, screaming "Astral Drain" as the sword pierced the soldier in the lower stomach, draining the unfortunate foes vital life force. The energy siphon was linked back to rose via a string of purple coloured energy that added her enemy's vitality to her own. A few seconds later, the sword withdrew, taking back its place with its owner's hand. The soldier fell off the tree, hitting the ground with a thump, lying motionless.

Zack on the other hand had troubles trying to mount an offense against his ranged aggressors which sat safely on top of the tall thickets. He was a capable combatant if he's enemies are within melee range, but he was in no position to reach them with his spear. He had no ranged offense he could utilise of his own, and he hadn't the agility to get atop the towering trees where his attackers currently resided. Zack cursed to himself, being reduced to only evading the onslaught of projectiles that were slowly wearing him down. For the moment he was as helpless as a sitting duck, and his enemies knew it.

Zack looked over at Rose, hoping for some sort of assistance, but she was preoccupied with her own opponents, although not nearly having the difficulty he was. The advantage of flight meant that no matter where her enemies would try to position themselves they were never out of her reach. Any attempts at tapping into his own Dragon Spirit were quickly thwarted by the out of reach enemies who gave him no breathing room to concentrate. Frustration threatened to consume him, but Zack stilled his thoughts as best he could. If he was going to find a way to reach his ranged adversaries then he'd have to do it through wit, not pointless anger.

A glint of steel caught his eye, and saw several kunai and shruiken scattered around the ground close by. Without much else left to go on he set about an impossible task: Trying to use the enemy's weapons against them. Rolling across the ground and scooping up a couple of fallen projectiles in a rather deft act of dexterity, Zack aimed as best he could, drew his arm back as if to throw a stone or spear, and tossed the small ranged weapons as hard as he could. His lack of finesse in such combat tactics showed, the weapons went wayward, never looking like hitting his foes at all. Nevertheless he attempted the same trick a few more times, but he garnered no better results. Without any kind of education he may as well be throwing them blind folded and destabilised. All the failure earned him were three shruiken to the arms and chest, which, thankfully didn't penetrate past his armour more than a few inches. While not fatal, they still bled out considerably, and in conjunction with his quickly growing fatigue, Zack didn't think he'd last too much longer before they would strike a vital area. Moving around within the trees in an attempt to gain respite did him no good either; his assailants followed like monkeys swinging atop the high branches, the act of trying to escape only bringing him ever closer to exhaustion.

Rose meanwhile had claimed another handful of lives while sustaining no additional injures. Her combat finesse combined with her unrestrained mobility and frightening magic made dispatching the covered goons appear as easy as swatting away flies. Once the last of her the enemies as far as she could see fell under her blade, she took a few moments to rise above the tall trees and get a bird's eye view of the battleground. She could locate no more assassins besides the ones hassling Zack (she should dispose of them soon she supposed, but she wanted to be sure there were no more waiting in the shadows), and when she found none she felt a wave of disappointment so strong it nearly unhinged her. A dormant bloodlust that had until now been sated awoke, the desire to continue her butchery almost overriding all other thought or feeling. It was like a rabid dog getting its first taste of blood that sent it into a killing frenzy, no longer able to tell friend from foe. The sensation took her by surprise; she hadn't felt such a strong urge to indiscriminately kill since her first few transformations when she was unable to stifle the chaotic influence of the Dark Dragoon Spirit. Locked in a momentary internal battle, it took a great deal of Rose's will to quarantine the bloodthirsty urges.

Zack in the meantime continued to stay ahead of his persistent pursuers. Wondering where in the hell Rose had disappeared to, Zack only managed to narrowly avoid another barrage of dangerous projectiles. His aching legs objected with every step, the blood flowing out of his wounds freely in a small trail of red that seeped to the green earth below. His luck turned from bad to worse when his legs caught on a small outcropping hidden beneath the long grass and he felt his body fall forward, unable to do anything put abandon his spear and place his hands in front of him to cushion the impact. Once he hit the mercifully soft grassland beneath, he waited for what he was sure would be another bombardment of ranged weaponry (although by now Zack had wondered if their ammunition stock was limitless).

None came. When he rolled onto his back, he heard the agonising cries of his enemies as they fell out of the trees with a sickening thud, the grass below painted bright red. Rose, who had not a moment to spare, had made her move.

"Thank god for you!" Zack yelled, utter relief flooding him over him. Rose floated down a few paces from his position, her once immaculate dark armour hidden beneath a layer of crimson. Rose reverted to her human form immediately, the pressure of the upkeep too much for her injured body to sustain. She fell on her knees with a surprised grunt of pain.

"Shit, Rose!" Zack hollered as he got to his feet and ran to meet her.

"I'm fine. I think I just put too much pressure on my ribs" Rose assured, one hand held tightly around her throbbing ribs. A rivulet of blood cascaded from the corners of her mouth, suggesting once more she had suffered internal injures.

"Damn it Rose, I warned you not to overdo it!" Zack protested hotly. Rose ignored him and pushed him away with a shove of her left hand. Ever so gingerly she got to her feet and readied her sword.

"If you got energy to complain then use it to make sure we're clear of enemies" she barked harshly. Zack, who was wanted nothing more than to blast her for her recklessness, remained silent for a time and scanned the area for enemies. A good minute went by and when they heard or saw no more activity (save for perhaps a few groans for the foes unlucky enough to be dealt a swift death), they relaxed, but only a little.

"By the gods, you will never completely recover if you keep pressuring your injures" Zack pressed on, not willing to let the subject drop.

"It's not like I had any choice, if I didn't do what I did we'd both be dead by now" Rose snapped, hiding obvious pain. She used the palm of her hands to wipe away the blood from her face. Zack glared at her hotly, but could say nothing. He knew she was right, and also knew it was his own inability to protect her that led her to overstrain her body.

"Damn it to hell" he cursed, turning away and retrieving his spear.

"You are weak" Rose announced coldly. Zack, who felt like he had been struck by a physical blow wheeled towards her, eyes wide with hurt and fury. "Barring one kill you were useless, spending most of your time, or should I say wasting your time with silly antics that got you nowhere. You don't use your head, nor can you harness the great power given to you, which, come to that, if you could have utilised during the battle at Rouge, would have saved me injury in the first place! So think on how you can improve your own sloppy battle tactics before you criticise mine." As the words left Rose's mouth she was instantly hit by a surge of guilt. She knew it wasn't his fault she got injured on either occasion, but she was in pain, looking at the prospect of being helpless once more, and above all she hated being looked down upon or lectured to.

Zack, who had been stung beyond all measure, could only look at her with a mixture of anger and embarrassment. His cheeks burned a fire red and he thought he had never been so close to slapping a woman in his life.

Yet even the act of yelling sent Rose into a fit of coughing and spluttering. She dropped down to one knees, mouth covering her spasms. Zack, who put the argument behind him rushed to her.

"Will you just keep quiet and stop pushing yourself?" Zack urged, exasperated.

Once the fit subsided Rose removed her hand to find more blood had marred her glove. The pain, which was almost on the level of unbearable, skyrocketed as her body trembled at every spasm. Her vision turned hazy and she thought she would once more pass out. Unfortunately for her she wasn't going to escape the pain so easily this time.

"We can't stay here; we're too in the open. If they're any other attack squads we'll be roasted, so our best bet is to go back to camp and rest" Zack said, looking up towards the darkening sky. "To make matters worse it'll be dark soon, making us even more vulnerable."

Zack looked over at Rose whose eyes had an unsettling glazed look about them. "Rose? You with me?"

"..Yeah" she moaned uncomfortably.

"You're not going to like this, but I'm going to have to carry you" Zack decided with a sigh.

Rose, who was beyond any kind of mortification only groaned in response.

"I'll carry our weapons, so I'll need to get you over my back... piggy-back style." Zack was ready for an uproar, but got none. This worried him even more.

"So be still and I'll get you up as slowly as possible. Once to her feet he grabbed the weapons, placing the sword under his left armpit, and stabbed his spear into the earth tip first.

"I'll need you to hold on with your arms if you can" he said softly. Rose, who didn't look completely a part of this world anymore, nodded gingery.

"Just stay upright a moment..." Zack dipped so he was crouching, his back facing her front, felt her body press against his rear then fastened her legs and pushed upwards. Her arms locked around his shoulders and across his chest, but her grip felt flimsy. Supporting her with one hand he pulled out his spear, moved it behind him so the shaft was also at his rear, then held it from the far end of both sides. What this achieved was a makeshift support for Rose, the wooden spine tucked under the tops of her legs, offering extra stability as well as a little decorum. Once he was sure her sword was safely tucked under his arm and wasn't going to inadvertently injure either of them, Zack began his long, arduous journey back towards the cabins.

* * *

Over an hour later, when the last rays of light half-lit the sky, Zack passed the group of abandoned huts. He had moved into their cabin, tended to Rose with the minimal provisions he could, and got what few hours of shut eye he could afford his weary body.

As the night wore on however Rose had got progressively worse, and Zack had to abandon his initial idea of remaining in the cabin in favour of getting Rose proper medical treatment, and so repeating the earlier process, Zack would carry Rose towards the ruins of Rouge.

* * *

The townsfolk would hopefully have begun to regather themselves from their decimated home, and when Zack left the Poseidon was still harboured within the bay. If nothing else Zack knew Paula had access to better medical equipment than the paltry herbs and bandages he could muster, The risk of course was a much longer journey, and in the veil of night as well. But, Zack supposed it went both ways. It would also help conceal them as well from any would be attackers if they had any luck.

Rose meantime fell in and out of consciousness, so it was up to Zack for the most part to keep her upright. When she was unconscious, she appeared, at least to Zack, a great deal in less pain, and that much was good. Despite their earlier quarrel (Zack had reflected it was probably more due to the situation than anything else, so he tried his best not to take her words to heart), he didn't enjoy seeing her hurt. He thought, again despite her cutting words, if he could take her pain instead, he would. It was crazy, ludicrous given the small time he knew her, but something about her drew him towards her, like a mesmerizing play or captivating song. She scared him as well, made him angry, irritated, confused and hurt, but the knowledge, at least on some basic or small level that he may actually be developing feelings outside plutonic companionship scared him the most. He was never one for 'love at first sight,' in his limited experience love was something that was built up upon a strong base over a span of time as opposed to seeing someone and knowing from the beginning, and especially with Rose, so much was a mystery. She was a giant puzzle that not only could not be put together but one could not even locate all the necessary pieces. Shaking his head in an effort to free himself of such thoughts, he set his mind back to the urgent task at hand. He needed to get her proper attention.

Rose's shallow breathing came to a stop and for a fearful moment Zack thought she had died. When he turned his head towards her he was relieved to see she had simply woken up once more, her head tilted towards the starry sky.

"... Thank you" she murmured. Her voice sounded raspy and strained, but there was an unmistakeable sincerity behind it that took Zack by surprise.

"And I shouldn't have said the harsh things I did earlier... I know I can't unsay them, nor can I properly apologise but..."

"Don't worry I understand" Zack said, silencing her. "Just rest and conserve your strength." He felt her weight shift once more and he again turned his head to make sure she was okay. Judging by her hazy eyes she was only half conscious at best, and he wondered with silent amusement if she would remember this conversation. If she didn't, he would have a great deal of fun reminding her when she had a clear head. Sorry or not, payback's a bitch.

"It's not your fault you haven't yet mastered your spirit, I shouldn't have taken that out on you. In truth, it took me a long time to attain complete control over my spirit, so I'm not in any place to pass judgment."

Zack, who had given up on the idea of silencing her (ironic he thought, it was usually the other way around) decided he'd join in on the banter, and perhaps confess a hidden truth.

"To be honest, I've kind of... shied away from transforming. I'm not as hopeless at is as I let on, it's just..." Zack searched for the right words. "It scares me. Each time I have I've felt an undeniable urge to kill everything around me, whether they are ally or enemy. It's like I go into this berserker trance where I go into blood frenzy. I'm more of a slave to the spirit, and on one such occasion I changed I nearly ended up killing Wen... If I did it at a critical time and turned on you for example..." Zack didn't need to finish the sentence. Understanding dawned on Rose, despite her semi-lucidness.

"The Dragoon Spirits feed off us, much like a dog does its owner. However, if you show fear or weak fortitude, the spirit will try and control you, much like a dog, or any other animal would try to attain as much control over its master as allowed. You have to take control of the power; you can't let it rule you. It sensed your trepidation and fear and uses it against to exert its own authority. A Dragoon Spirit is much like a wild beast, it is fine once tamed, but taming it can be very difficult for those without strong will or determination." The more she explained, the more coherent she became.

"I see" Zack responded, and although he was sure Rose meant nothing by it, her words made him feel weak and pitiful.

"If you are serious about becoming a Dragoon Knight, this is a bridge you will have to cross. You will find yourself relying on the Dragoon Spirit, so the sooner you find a way to work with it in unison, the easier it will be for you." Zack nodded in response looking into the distant sky and clouds.

"It shouldn't be too long till we reach Rogue" Zack said, changing the subject.

"Rouge? You've carried me that far?"

"Yeah, you looked pretty bad for a while so I thought I'd try and get you some proper medical attention"

"I can walk from here" Rose instructed.

"I don't think you can" Zack replied without stopping.

"My injuries aren't as bad as they appear, the pain has almost completely subsidised.

"You're lying" he said.

"You need a rest, and I _can _walk, so unless you want me to start kicking you I suggest you let me off."

Zack sighed but came to a stop. "Only if you let me assist you, you understand? You won't be able to put your whole weight on your ribs, and even if you can it isn't good for them."

Content to meet half way, Rose agreed. "Alright." She dismounted tentatively, then took back her blade and sheathed it. As promised, she let Zack assist her by letting him drape am arm under hers for support. Without the additional weight on his back Zack felt brief relief.

The two began walking again.

"So… how'd you become a Dragoon Knight?" Zack asked after they had journeyed a good amount in silence.

Rose fixed him a piercing gaze.

"What?" Zack questioned innocently. "I told you how I acquired mine."

Rose sighed in what sounded like a vexed resignation, then began to tell her story about how she attained her Dragoon Spirit from the Dark Dragon Michael. She even continued to tell him how she met the rest of her old companions.

"Sweet and kind Shirley, only one of two of her companions who I truly connected with. Serious to a fault, she was certainly the most caring women I knew and was aptly gifted with the White Silver Dragoon Spirit. Then there was gentle and protective Belzac. One might think of him as a brute from a glance, but he was gentle in nature and held strong sense of responsibility and an even stronger affinity with nature and its environment. Because of this, the Golden Dragoon spirit of the Earth selected him as its master. He held a deep bond with the young and energetic Damia, one of the defective Winglies whose chatter would never cease. She would be the first Wingly who bore A Dragoon Spirit and as such it came to no surprise it was the Blue Dragoon Spirit that controlled the ice and tides that attached itself to her. Snide and conceited, Kanzas was a rather misunderstood individual who despite his rude and arrogant forefront, remained loyal to our cause to the very end. He had the whim of the Violet Dragoon Spirit that shook the skies with spectacular sheets of lightning." She paused a moment, the effort of reflect on her ageless past still causing her visible grief.

"Then there was Syuveil, If there was ever the brains of the operation, it was he, the noble and intelligent elder of the septet who used his spare time to either record in his diary about all the findings he'd stumbled across or be planning out our next move. Last and by no means least, was Zeig..." Another paused. "The respected leader of the Dragoon Knights, brash and cocky, he even captured the spirit of Emperor Diaz and inspired most of the human race to rebel against their slavery"

She went on to explain about how her comrades met their demise in the Dragoon campaign some eleven thousand years ago in Kadessa. Rose was sure he'd barrage her full of question during her story, but he remained respectfully silent, listening intently to her tale. He was a good listener and she admired that, perhaps that's why she told him so much when she often spoke so little about her own life or past, particularly this sensitive topic. She felt it somehow infectious, like she could tell him anything, and that dismayed her. Finally she finished her story, a swell of anguish and regret boiled inside her as it always did when she recounted that part of her past.

_Now the questions will come_ Rose thought.

"I see" was Zack's one and only response. His eyes looked distant, lost in thoughts of his own and the two of them said no more.

They travelled nearly the rest of the journey in total quiet. It was a comfortable silence somehow, a serene tranquillity neither were prepared to break until necessary. The sun was beginning to ascend behind the mountains, a magnificent morning glow beginning to brim from the peaks. The water reflected this wonderfully, sparkling almost immaculately. It made the trees they passed by look almost alive, giving them a brightening tinge that looked somehow supernatural. The sound of gulls, waves crashing and the smell of sea salt were as prevalent as ever.

"Lucky there are no monsters around" Zack finally spoke. Rose thought this rather peculiar. It seemed as if this whole island was immune to the spawning of monsters now that Zack brought it to her attention.

"What would you do if such one such monster appeared in front of us now?" Rose questioned raising her eyebrow slightly.

Zack didn't hesitate with his reply in the slightest. "I'd protect you of course" he said proudly.

"An honourable reply, however I can-" Rose was cut off by Zack.

"But I can take care of myself, yeah I know" he rehearsed.

Rose looked momentarily taken aback by him finishing her sentence. She shook her head and continued to walk with the support of Zack.

"… Thank you again" Rose suddenly for the second time, although whether she was thanking his chivalry or the fact he carried her most of the journey Zack wasn't sure. He somehow thought not a good idea to ask, much like a smile, he had an idea gratitude was likely an ever rare display. Opting for the calm, soothing silence once more, they made their way to the ruins of what was once the beautiful tropical city Rouge.


	8. Chapter 8: Guilt and Regret

**Chapter 8: Guilt and Regret**

"You have failed a second time."

King Hytas, who had been sitting upon his throne with an uninterested expression on his face, eyed the figure warily.

"You're so called 'elite' assassins have been slain."All respectable pretenses had been thrown aside, what replaced it was open displeasure.

"I was informed as such. You have my apologies" Hytas expressed regrettably.

"You couldn't even execute a wounded women?"

"She wasn't merely wounded; she was in possession of her Dragoon Spirit. Elite assassins or no, they were never going to be a match for her once she harnessed her old power."

"Yes, how exactly _did _she come into possession of her spirit? Last I checked you had unearthed it from the Moon That Never Sets." The concealed figure pulled back his hood, revealing eyes both suspicious and sinister. "If you are playing games with me, _king, _then let me remind you that it is because of me you are in the position you are, and I can easily take it away as I see fit!"

Hytas held up his hands as if absolve himself from any distrust. "We have been under attack as of late, by none other than the other remaining Dragoon Knights. They manage to breach the treasure chambers and many artifacts were lost."

"I'd taken care of most of the threat, is your army so incompetent you couldn't capture or kill a few stragglers?"

"With all due respect, they are formidable foes, foes who I remind you fell Melbu Frahma himself. It shouldn't come to such a surprise they proved difficult, even when on their own"

Cloke appeared not to be listening. Covering his face with his hood once more, he turned his back, as if to leave the royal chamber.

"It appears the time has come to involve myself more… directly" Cloke said as he moved for the exit.

"I'm sure that isn't necessary, I can handle-"

"You've failed me twice, and that's two times too many" The concealed man broke in. "Because of that, I must now take control of the situation myself. You do not seem to fathom the potential threat she is turning into. I will not sit back idly while you continue to fail; only to find that when I do decide to deal with the problem directly it's too late to do so." The king recoiled as if struck.

"I will nip this in the bud now, before matters grow out of hands." Cloke reassured. "But I am not pleased in the slightest at the prospect of having to expose myself, putting myself at possible risk." Cloke let out a resigned sigh. "Yet none of this needs to concern you, I have other tasks for you to complete, after all, you are not entirely without purpose. Consider this a chance to repent for your previous short comings."

"Yes, of course" The now composed king concurred, bowing slightly once again.

"Good. And remember, if you disappoint me or are indeed attempting to betray me, I will find someone else to replace you." To this the king said nothing. When Cloke appeared satisfied that his message had got across he exited the throne room.

When Hytas was sure Cloke no longer within the perimeter, he summoned one of his servants.

"Get me Amika" the king ordered. "There's been a change of plan."

* * *

"We've finally made it" Zack beamed proudly as he stood before what was now the dead carcass of Rogue. His ears were met with the sounds of converse and reconstruction in the distance towards what was once the central expanse. "Sounds like we're not the only ones here" Zack said merrily, his usual upbeat nature restored.

The second, and perhaps most important thing Zack noticed was that the dock was intact, completely unscathed from the earlier assault of the Sandorian army. The Poseidon was docked not too far, idly moving with the water current.

Rose looked up slowly, now using Zack's body as more than just a subtle support. He was really the only thing holding her up.

"Not long and we'll be able to treat you properly" Zack reassured.

"I'm fine" she mumbled with a voice not much beyond a whisper. It hurt to raise her voice to any stronger levels, although judging by the sound of the local ambiance she would have to once they moved towards the docks.

"How can you still say that?" Zack retorted almost humorously. "You really have a way of overdoing things you know?"

Rose just shook her head, and pointed onwards. They began to enter the decimated town, migrating slowly towards the source of the sound.

"Whoa" Zack gasped as he saw masses of men and women moving around the town, carrying lumber and metals along with other crafting materials while others where in the process of constructing, erecting new beams, bridges and residences. In the space of just under a week, the townsfolk left had regrouped and immediately set upon recreating their wrecked village. If nothing else the citizens of Rouge weren't short on spirit. While still only in its beginning stages (the ground floor the only area so far being reconstructed) the progress made so far was a promising sign indeed. It would still likely takes months before it even looked like becoming the town it once was (perhaps even years) but full of heart and determination, they were going to get it done, one nail at a time.

"Looks like they're already beginning to repair the damage" Zack said with wonder. Rose was equally surprised with how quick repair preparations had begun. In all honesty she didn't think that a town this insignificant would ever be repaired.

They made their way to the docks; avoiding the cluster of preoccupied repair men and women who went about their business with a bizarre cheeriness, considering it was only a week ago they lost their town and a good portion of their inhabitants. Rose supposed it was put on for the most part to try and raise morale. Besides a few odd stars and glances, no one troubled the duo as they hobbled towards the undamaged jetty.

"Zack! Rose!" A recognizable voice greeted.

"Wen!" Zack beamed in astonishment and delight. Zack's mentor and lieutenant was standing at the edge of the jetty, seemingly surveying the sea and busy townsfolk. Once Wen spotted them a warm smile flashed from his bushy mouth, illustrating great relief.

"I was worried you had met you're demise" he said sincerely. "I'm glad that was not the case."

"Not dead, but plenty injured" Zack replied breathlessly. The long journey across the island had taken its toll on both of them. Out of any immediate danger Zack felt exhaustion tug at his body like a giant, sinking weight.

Wen ran his eyes down both of them and nodded with new understanding. "The Poseidon has more than adequate medical provisions, so let us make our way to the emergency ward onboard." Wen slipped to the other side of Rose and aided Zack in supporting her. With the extra hand to help, Zack felt the burden ease considerably.

"Thought you guys might have left us when you said you heading to Kazas" Zack said as the two carried Rose on to the ship.

Wen chuckled. "We weren't about to leave you behind old friend. We dispatched a search party for you earlier to try and locate you at the huts, but we were unable to establish a connection. But let us worry about explanations later; we must get Rose upstairs to the medical room."

They bumped into Paula on the way who also escorted the three to the small ward filled with a two beds, an on board nurse ready for treatment. Paula ushered another one to be sure and once she was in the hands of trained professionals, Zack and Wen were asked to leave while they tended her wounds. Without much other choice, the two companions moved out towards the second level deck to brief each other on current events.

* * *

"We holed up in the cabins you instructed for nearly five days" Zack began as they viewed the boisterous people of Rouge that were scattering below them. "Then we were met with a woman of Sandora who claims that the King isn't acting of his own will, but that of another. She wanted us to help with the assassination of a guy who goes by the alias of 'Cloke.'"

To this piece of information Wen looked at him stunned. "Who was this woman?" He pressed eagerly. Yet Zack couldn't help but notice his mentor's eyes flicker with brief recognition before a sheen of astonishment clouded his expression. Zack watched him in silence for a moment, wrestling with his inner thoughts. It was no secret that Rose was skeptical of Wen, a fact she stated flatly during their tenure together, and Zack couldn't decide if what he saw was really there or simply his mind being paranoid, creating shadows and falsities that didn't really exist. After a moment's hesitation Zack looked away abashed. He couldn't bring himself to distrust his good friend, after all he had proven on more occasions then he could count to be a true ally.

"_We have informants and sources everywhere, even ones within your ranks." _Those words from the strange Sandorian woman sung in his mind like a song you couldn't shake from memory. Yet it didn't mean it had to be Wen, or that she was telling the truth at all come to that. For all they know this was all an elaborate ruse to manipulate or destabilize them.

_But if that was the case why would she give Rose the Dragoon Spirit? _

An interesting question. An important question. The woman placed a lot of trust in the two of them by giving Rose her spirit, a little too much trust Zack couldn't help but think.

_If it seems too good to be true, chances are it is…_

"Zack?" Wen asked, placing a steadying hand on his shoulder. Zack broke out of his reverie with a shocked gasp, unaware he had retreated into his own mind for so long.

"Sorry, sorry it's... been a rough few days."

"I'm sure it has. Take your time, there is no rush."

"I'd never seen the dark woman before. She was… exotic to say the least. Dark skinned wearing strange dark leather armour with even darker hair that was tied back behind her. She also spoke with a foreign accent of which I've never heard. Sorry, I can't explain much more than that, it's what she said that held most of my attention. Rose would likely be able to give you a more detailed account."

Wen nodded. "Strange times" he muttered, casting his gaze out towards the seas. "Yet even though she may appear genuine, it's likely some sort of mind games or trap."

Zack shrugged. "That's what I thought too. But then she did something that would defy all logic if they were using this as a ruse to act against us: She gave Rose her Dark Dragoon Spirit."

Wen stared at him again with gaping shock, but Zack fancied he saw another flash of recognition. But did he really? He was too tired to know or care for the moment, he would mull over it all when he had a clear head.

"Listen, sorry to pardon myself, but I think I'm in dire need of a good rest." Zack tried to soften his pardon with a smile, but didn't know if he made any success of it.

"Of course" Wen agreed, mirroring his friend's grin. "You don't need to be so formal. We have a long trip to Donau ahead of us so we have plenty of time to swap recounts of events."

Thanks, I feel like I could literally drop to the floor and pass out right now."

"I fancy you'd be much more comfortable in a bed however."

"Amen to that old friend. It's good to see you are in once piece as well." Zack clasped his comrade's silken shoulder as he walked towards the deck's exit.

"You are wounded also I notice" Wen added. Zack glanced at himself before turning back towards Wen. He was right; his left arm and chest had been pierced, the gash across his leg that he received from the battle in Rouge had reopened as well.

"I'll get myself checked out after I rest."

"See to it you do. We need you as fresh as possible for the upcoming tasks."

Zack glanced at him questioningly.

"Don't worry about it for the time being, rest. I'll fill you in later." Zack nodded and turned around once more, the temptation of sleep all too much to delay any longer.

"Oh, and one more thing!" Wen said before Zack could disappear behind the wooden doorway. "You and Rose seem to have become... a lot closer since I saw you last."

Zack looked at his friend puzzled. "What do you mean?"

Wen fixed him a piercing stare that felt like it bore into his very soul. Unnerved even under the effects of drowsiness Zack couldn't help but shift a little under the intensity of his probing gaze.

Then the look was gone and what replaced it was a chuckle of good humour. "Forget it, go, get some sleep, I shall speak to you again soon."

Confused and wondering if his question had double meanings, Zack slunk off towards a vacant bedroom where he would fall into a restless sleep full of unanswered questions.

* * *

When Zack woke from his slumber he was met with the faint movement of the ship along with the sound of parting sea. Zack guessed they were well and truly back on their way to Donau ad wondered briefly if he should take the chance to catch more rest. He quickly threw away the thought when he noticed the blood on his white linen sheets, likely from the few open wounds he'd suffered.

_Hope they're not infected _he thought grimly, wishing he'd taken the chance to at least clean the wounds before he slept. Touching and examining them cautiously, Zack found at least as best as he could tell that they were relatively clean.

Zack hadn't even taken the time to shed his armour before hitting the bed and immediately felt unclean, a mixture of sweat and blood sticking to his underclothes as he placed his hauberk, leggings and gauntlets aside, leaving on only his boots. Moving to a small basin on a small bench on the opposite side of his bed, he splashed his face quickly before deciding he'd have to get his wounds checked, dirty or no.

Mercifully the medical rooms weren't far from the sleeping quarters, his leg muscles throbbing with every painful step. He walked slowly and unevenly, like he had some kind of pronounced limp. The ship workers stole uncertain looks at him as he passed, the main corridor of the second floor that connected all the chambers, and judging from their expressions Zack thought he must look like hell. He felt like it too, even after his generous sleep.

What Zack was surprised to see (he supposed he was too tired to take note when he had escorted Rose to the medical bay earlier) was that there were not one room but five, all fitted with two beds and numerous medical equipment. In all five of the rooms separated by only a thin curtain, were badly injured men, women and children that Zack could only assume were from Rouge. Patients that suffered from terrible burns, severed limbs and deep abrasions among other fatal looking wounds riddled the bed ridden victims and Zack couldn't take his eyes away from the carnage.

"Can I help you?" A voice injected. It was that of a blonde nurse, her brow knitted together impatiently. One of few that were working around the clock to save the endangered lives.

"Uhh, I was looking at getting my wounds treated but… you appear busy with more pressing matters, so I'll just-"

"You're Zack right? Follow me" the nurse urged, not waiting for a response. She pushed him behind a curtain that had Rose lying on the bed, eyes closed.

"Sit" The woman gestured on a nearby chair. He did.

"Give me a look" the nurse said. Zack thought to protest, but the woman seemed to notice this and silenced him with a twirl of her finger. "C'mon, I haven't all day."

Zack lifted his shirt to show a nasty gash in the side of his chest, along with the reopened wound in his leg and a stab wound just above his elbow.

Then nurse noticed a couple of the wounds began to crust unhealthily. "Did you keep them clean?" She asked as she began to dab the injuries with disinfectant.

"Well… no, not really" he admitted.

"Foolish" she responded. "They look on their way to infection."

"Sorry, my bad" Zack apologized a little embarrassed. To this the nurse said nothing, only let out a knowing sigh.

The next few minutes rolled on in silence, and Zack found it somehow uncomfortable. He decided he'd angle for some kind of banter.

"Are these patients all victims of the attack on Rouge?"

"Obviously" she said as she began to re-stitch Zack's leg wound.

"Must be pretty tough."

"Oh, you have no idea" she said, not looking up at him while she was knelt over. "We've probably got no more than sixteen hours of sleep in the past week."

To this Zack said nothing, but wished desperately he could. Yet any answer of encouragement or solace sounded empty and pointless. The two exchanged no more words until the nurse had dressed his injuries.

"Thank you" Zack said with a winning smile. The nurse did not return it.

"You bear the burden of this disaster you know" she murmured, visibly drained near the point of human limitation. "You all do. I don't blame you for what happened, yet you must shoulder the burden of what happened that black day. In the end who's at fault is a pointless fact, lost in the bloodlust of war that no one even remembers what sparked it, but I hope you noticed these poor victims and realise this is the result of your petty war. These are not soldiers, nor fighters or faction members but mere civilians, caught in the crossfire of being at the wrong place at the wrong time."

Zack felt the weight of her words strike his heart harder than any words Rose had spoke. He bowed his head low in guilt and regret.

"I know."

"And this will only continue as the war ravages other countries." Tears filled the ashen nurse's eyes. "Children_, _mere _children _no more than three or four are getting butchered or dying slow and painful deaths, children who had the right to at least grow to adulthood taken away from them by men with swords and arrows. Half a dozen at least died in my own care alone, and the ones I saved are an arm or leg down, or worse, paralyzed, never to walk or move again."

Zack could and would not say or interrupt her venting. He could only watched her, feeling remorse so strong it made him hate himself a little.

Then she was gone, disappearing into another room without a word. With a heavy sigh Zack leaned back on his chair, near the point of tears himself.

* * *

Rose, while eyes closed, had heard everything. She herself was used to the blame and subsequent condemnation placed upon her and as such learned how to remove herself from those traps, for traps were exactly what they were. Traps that would make one doubt themselves, and eventually lose themselves in a pool of self pity, regret and guilt. Zack however had not yet learned to accept that this was the reality of war.

She opened her eyes and turned to him. His head was down near his lap.

"What she said is right" Rose spoke, startling Zack.

"You're awake!"

"Have been for a while now, yes. In any event, what she said is true, an unfortunate result of any war or conflict. None the less there is nothing you can do except move on. This is the ugly side of war, all the chaos, all the deaths and destruction; we're a part of it and thus are responsible. Yet you cannot dwell on those who died or might die, that is out of your control. All you can do is contemplate the future and how you can quickly end the strife so no more have to suffer the same fate as Rouge.

"Do you have no sympathy for the ones who died?" Zack asked outraged. "The ones who had nothing to do with this war outside be in the wrong place!"

"Do you have any sympathy for the soldier's you killed?" Rose asked flatly.

"Of course I do, they are people as well, but it's different, they are soldiers, they are the enemy."

"It's as you said" Rose countered. "They are people too. Men and women, who have families and children, people who are only separated by matters of opinion and point of view. People who were likely conscripted to the war more than volunteered, forced to take orders whether they agree with it or not."

"What are you getting at?" Zack cried in exasperation.

"This is conflict Zack; this is what it's all about. It's harsh, cruel, and most of all its encompassing, consuming the lives of fighters and bystanders alike. This is it, our triumphs and failings are not met with heroic grandeur or the shouting praise of hundreds of thankful victims. They are marred by the bloodshed and death dealt in its wake. It is not the people we save that remain with us in our minds and hearts but the haunting images of the people we had to sacrifice to achieve the greater goal. You had to expect this on some level when you signed up for a side battling a political wide-spread war. What were you honestly expecting?"

To this Zack could say nothing. He had expected collateral and knew war was an ever hungry creature, consuming all in its path like an impartial beast that saw no one as friend nor foe but simply food. War was always hungry. Yet he was in no way prepared for the true face of battle, he had somehow thought, or dreamed as it turned out when faced with the real reality, that the good he would do would far surpass the bad. At this point it seemed the opposite, he had saved few while butchered many, directly or indirectly.

"If you do not have the heart for this I suggest you abandon this crusade."

Zack looked at her, a strong fire burning in his eyes.

"I cannot" he said firmly. "For those we have killed and for those whose homes we have destroyed, I have to bring peace. I have to believe that all this carnage will lead to a better future, I just have to. To give up now will mean all those who have perished so far were in vain."

"There will be much more carnage in the future. The reality of the situation is even if you _do _manage to end the war, you will have caused more destruction than you have saved, as always the case."

"You've been right on everything but that" Zack corrected. "Some things _are _worth fighting for, dying for, perusing no matter the cost. As someone who fought in the Dragon Campaign, I expect you'd know that. Or have you forgotten your friends sacrifice?"

At the mention of her lost allies Rose felt a prickle run up her spine and neck.

"Do not presume you ken such sacrifices." Her tone was deceptively calm yet behind it was a seething rage dangerously close to blinding fury, and perhaps that fury would have exploded if she were not bed bound. "War is an ever turning wheel. While we defeated the Winglies and liberated ourselves from them, we still face a far greater threat, a threat that has lingered for eleven-thousand years: Mankind itself. My friends died so we can take over and war among ourselves like wild animals fighting for trivial titles, coin and land possession. My _friends_, who I'll not hear you speak of again in such manner unless you wish to lose your tongue, gave their life so instead of fighting Winglies we simply dissolved our unity to fight ourselves. Mankind are warmongers by their very nature, there can never be a true lasting peace, you vanquish one villain and another more heinous is waiting to take their place. All we can hope to achieve is a fragile, short-lived truce before it all repeats itself."

Zack watched her with a mixture of helpless sorrow and sympathy. To Rose it looked too much like pity and she turned away, hating the idea of him of all people showing her such a quality.

"Have you really lost all faith in mankind?" Zack asked softly.

"Long, long ago."

Zack stood up, feeling a flurry of new emotions. "Then I guess we're just two different people on two different wavelengths. I guess I can't expect you to understand my pain when to you there is no hope."

"You are young Zack, young and hopeful, we all were once. Give it a few years, and perhaps, if you live long enough, you too will grasp the unfortunate truth."

"I hope not. I really hope not." With that, Zack walked out of the room.

* * *

Within the hour, as Rose had set into a doze, she head the thump of soft footsteps.

"May I enter?" Question a recognizable voice.

"Sure" she said, sitting upright. Her torso had once again been bandaged, but she was also under the effects of some kind of pain relief, which may also be messing with her perception a little.

"How are you feeling?" The green robed figure asked softly.

"Fine" Rose responded flatly. She noticed in his hand he held a small tray, a small bowl of soup and a glass of water sitting atop it. He placed it on her bedside table.

"Thought you might be hungry or thirsty."

"Thanks."

Wen sighed deeply. "Look, I know you don't see me in a… particularly trusting light."

"Don't take it personally" Rose cut before he could continue. Wen inclined his head respectfully.

"Be that as it may, Zack is my main worry at the moment. He is struggling, and I fear you are not making it any easier."

Rose's eyes narrowed sharply. "I'm neither his babysitter nor his mentor, both are your job" she responded coldly. "He's too soft for this sort of work and you know it, it's your fault for conscripting him."

Wen seemed to study her for a few moments. "What you say is true, yet he looks up to you in a way he looks up at no one else. It is his spirit we need. I have him by my side because of his conscience, his ability to believe in humanity and the good in people when most of us have given up, the good nature to help anyone who is in trouble and hates the thought of those in pain, friend or ally. He reminds me of a certain someone, as I'm sure he does you as well."

"You're comparing him to Dart?"

Wen chuckled warmly. "No, no, for they are two separate people, I merely point out the similarities they share. My point is that it would do neither him nor any of us any good to stamp out his innocent, if not a little naive, nature. While you may view it as his biggest weakness, I see it as his greatest strength."

"His perception of reality is warped and apt to get him killed. Even if not, you saw how he was today, if this keeps up the weight of this war and its victims will destroy him. Can you not see that? Do you not understand it better for him to learn the harsh reality then live a sugar-coated lie?

"But would it not do him more good to find out that harsh reality for himself?"

This time Rose had no answer.

"None the less I didn't come here to pick a fight. Eat up; I've heard the soup is a flavor you rather enjoyed."

Zack glanced at the stainless bowl then back at Wen.

"Zack made it?"

"Indeed. He is worried about you Rose, in more ways than you can imagine."

"I don't need his worry; I can take care of myself."

"I'm sure you can. In any event eat and sleep, you're recovery is what is important at the moment.

"Wait. What of Dart and the others?" Rose inquired probingly.

Wen's expression turned grim. "We're not sure. All communication with the battle platoons in Kazas has gone dead. I tried to a reconnaissance mission but made no success of it."

Rose's gaze was piercing, but he paid no worry to it.

"That's why I need your speedy recovery, if we don't hear anything from them soon I'll have to gather what's left of our force and find out ourselves. I hope for your assistance in this matter, we're already facing overwhelming odds as it is. But that is for later, rest, and takes it easy. You've been through hell after all."

Much like Zack earlier, Wen turned heel and strode out without another word. Left to contemplate all that would and could be Rose fell into another uneasy slumber.


	9. Chapter 9: Training

**Chapter 9: Training**

Days rolled past without much activity save for the rough winds and seas that hindered the ships optimal speeds. The storm seemed to linger long after they passed the brunt of it, sending the occasional gale winds and not so occasional crashing waves. As a result their journey to Donau would take an extra day or two on top of their usual time.

Rose had spent the better part of the journey bedridden, although unlike the rural area of the tropical islands she had been confined to earlier, she a proper bed and medical care and bore it in good peace. With her ribs firmly set, her recovery was fast, seemingly accelerated by the presence of her Dragoon Spirit. On the final morning before they were scheduled dock into Donau later that day Rose was able to walk, albeit gingerly. The nurse had protested the idea of course, but after spending days lying in a bed with nothing to occupy her but her own thoughts save for the few visits from Zack and the nurses, Rose decided it would do her body good with a little exercise.

Zack in the meantime had bothered her little. He came in a couple of times a day to check her progress and diver food and water, but that was all. Whether or not it was due to him being busy with his commander or he was simply avoiding her after their earlier confrontation Rose wasn't sure.

Rose moved towards the top deck of the ship with calculated slowness. She used the iron railings on the sides of the hallways to support some of her weight. The boat was unusually silent and devoid of activity, both internally and externally. As she ventured through the stairs (with some hassle) that spilled to the open deck, the reason became apparent. It was dawn, and the weather was as clear, without a rain or storm cloud in sight. Even the water below was docile, the crystal blue shifting with a calm contentedness.

Wanting a clearer view of the horizon, the dark warrior moved to the bow where the deck ended at a triangular point, two thick safety rails around chest height spanning the parameter. As the rays of the early sun touched her sensitive skin she felt a kind of giddy urge to jump off the ship and swim amongst the perfect scenery below.

_I really have changed _Rose thought as she glanced upon the blue sky. But was it for the better or worse? It was impossible at this point to tell.

"A fine morning" A voice greeted from behind. Lost in thought she failed to notice a presence that was leaning against the small archway the led to the cabins below. Rose once more chastised herself for her complacency, a habit that was becoming all to frequent of late.

Zack moved towards the position she was leaning, standing next to her to admire the view.

"Good to see you're moving again."

"You're up early" Rose spoke placidly. The small waves crashed lightly against the rocking boat gently as the screech of gulls sounded in the background.

"I'd picture you more of a dusk person" Zack commented with the same kind of mildness.

"Actually, I much prefer the scenery of sunrise then sunset" Rose corrected.

"Oh" was Zack's only response. Given the scenery and the mood, it seems as if words were too shallow. They both stood there, side by side admiring the view of the sunrise, each in their own thoughts. It wasn't quite awkward, at least not yet, but natural communicate did seemed to have broken down since their heated debate several days prior.

After a few minutes of silence, Rose decided she'd be the one to break the ice. "Look, about the other day…"

Zack waved his hands in front of her. "Don't worry about it. We were both tired, beat up and frustrated. Anyway it changes nothing, we're both comrades, at least I hope, and even if we have differing point of views about certain subjects, that fact still remains."

Rose nodded but felt silently uncertain. Yet for the sake of peace, she didn't voice these megrims.

"Not long till we hit Donau." Zack said, changing the subject. "Make sure you take it easy on those ribs eh?"

"Yes of course, _captain_" Rose replied mockingly. Zack schooled his features into an expression of being thunderstruck.

"Rose, do you realize you just made a sarcastic remark?" Zack inquired, trying to sound serious.

"Yes, so?" Rose questioned back at him.

"Well sarcasm can be related to humor." He stated matter-of-factly, as if giving a riveting lesson on subjects unknown. "So that means you made an attempt at humor through sarcasm."

Rose continued to stare at him.

"So, under your stern and cold exterior, you_do_ possess some form of humor after all" Zack proclaimed, happy at his latest discovery. "I didn't think you had it in you."

"Forget I said anything" Rose groaned while Zack expressed great amusement in the form of snickering laughter.

"Well, now that we're nice and rowdy I think I'll make myself useful and fetch us some breakfast."

"Make yourself useful? That would be a pleasant change" Rose remarked.

"Oh, how you wound me so!" Zack said in mock hurt, another gale of laughter following as he disappeared behind the archway, leaving Rose to shake her head in wonder.

_Perhaps it's just how he deals with emotional turmoil _Rose thought vacantly. After all she knew another man who would implore similar tactics as using robust humour as an exterior to deal with the hardships that threatened to consume them.

_Zeig…_

Rose flushed the thought away immediately. She would have to stop making comparisons, and on that note trying to gain inner understandings of the way people's minds tick. It was a futile effort; even after an eleven thousand year odyssey she still didn't even understand the inner workings of her own mind let alone someone else's. All she could hope to do was discern friend and foe, and act accordingly. There is no place for any romantic notions of closeness or strong bonding when faced with an ever changing world where it could all turn in an instant. All that was apt to do is get you hurt or betrayed, both of which lead to the same end game. While true that Dart and his group (she never really thought herself truly a part of the group, gods know why) was an exception to her rule, but they were all drawn together by the same goal. Now, her main goal in her long life completed, she still felt lost and out of place in a world she never belonged.

_But the Dragon Spirits are still active, which means a greater threat still looms…_

Yes, that was her goal. Back in possession with her spirit, she must still be charged with the elimination of anything that threatens the world her friends gave their life for, as in this case something clearly does. She also had an idea it was something a whole lot bigger than a king who is being supposedly manipulated, or this widespread civil war come to that. Yes, if nothing else she would get to the bottom of who is pulling the strings for this mastermind puppet show.

Later that day the ship pulled into the harbor of Donau. The vibe of a good bustling crowd along with the familiar flowery scenery lifted Zack's spirits considerably, although he still longed to free his neighboring town from occupation. Wen followed the two as they slowly made their way towards the local Inn located in the center of the town. The dome like arching white building littered with various windows and doors that towered above most of the other architecture in the city appeared to somehow greet them warmly. Rose suggested it may have just been the transition from old, breaking huts and rocking ship cabins to sophisticated accommodation.

They were granted a suite without fuss, Wen showing his unending generosity by paying at his own behest. The room was spacey for a change, two beds along with a kitchen full of basic supplies and a balcony that oversaw the city's beauty.

"I'll have you two hole up in here for a few more days as I run more errands. I can't take you with me when you're not at full strength, so I will come back for you when I have a better idea of the situation" Wen pressed as they settled in. "Paula will also be remaining in port, so if I cannot for whatever reason see you in person, he'll be the delivery man."

"Will you be alright on your own? You seem to be doing a lot of solo work of late" Zack wondered.

"I'll be fine my friend, you needn't worry. I've word that we have a small, fortified camp a few miles outside Kazas, the remaining survivors of the initial raid. Once I get a briefing from them I shall return and collect you, as at this point a second attack seems likely."

Zack nodded and wished his comrade luck. Rose, while listening to the exchange, said nothing.

"Gah, I wish we could offer assistance" Zack said as Wen slipped away.

"It's almost like he doesn't _want_ our assistance. My injury appears to be the perfect excuse for him to run these 'errands'" Rose replied thoughtfully.

"His reasons are legitimate though" Zack countered. "You can't possibly fight in your condition, you can barely walk."

"Then why not bring you and leave me here? As you said, it's not like I'm in any condition to make a grand getaway."

To this Zack wasn't quite sure. "Perhaps he just likes the idea of someone watching over you? After all, you do have a history of attracting trouble." Zack grinned to make light of the comment, but Rose remained doubtful, paying no heed to his jest.

"You worry too much, not everyone is out to get us you know."

"And not everyone is an ally even when they seem to be. It's better to be diligent than sorry."

Zack sighed, seeing this head into the direction of another argument.

"Look, let's just put away the probing suspicion stick for now can we? Just give him a chance and he'll come though, he always has."

"How did you meet him anyway?" Rose inquired.

Zack rubbed his chin with his thumb and index finger, reflecting on his past. "I met him in Basil. I was born in Serdio, and as such I had initial plans to become a knight under his Majesty King Albert." He rubbed his head embarrassed. "My earliest dream was to be like Lavitz, and his father before him, Servi. As it happens though I'd never get the opportunity. My father fell ill and died, and without his support the house was forced to be sold when I was a young boy. With nowhere else to go I wondered the streets homeless, until I met Wen and he took me in. At the time he was somehow involved with the advisors of Basil, although he held no title. He taught me all I had to know about combat, amongst other things of course."

"I see" Rose said softly.

"Yep. So after that he became my father and mentor if you will. When I was old enough, I didn't want to burden myself upon him any more so I left and took to the country side, earning money where I could until I eventually made my way to Fletz, where I worked and bought a home."

Rose didn't say anything to this and Zack assumed it a sign of disinterest. "What? Not tragic enough for you?"

Rose shook her head. "No no, nothing like that. I just wonder how you came to join him and his resistance."

"Well, once the war began and he was building up faction members, he extended an invitation to me. We always kept in pretty close contact, and since I always promised to repay him for the kindness he showed me, I accepted."

"So all this is just an act of gratitude?"

"Well at first perhaps, but as the war spilled over most of the country side it became personal as well." Zack paused a moment, rummaging in his waist bag. "Then I acquired this, and I kinda took it as a sign you know?" Zack held his Red-Eyed Dragoon Spirit for display, the crimson glittering brightly.

Rose's own spirit began to pulse and resonate from within her satchel as well.

"On that subject" Rose interrupted. "I intend to give you some advice on how to better control it, if you would so desire."

"Well, of course, as long as you're able to."

Rose nodded. "Good. In the meantime I have an exercise you can do while we spend some of our down time."

"Oh?" Zack said, intrigued.

"Clasp your spirit and try to familiarize yourself with its essence and form a kind of internal connection."

"You can connect with your spirit like that?"

"On a subconscious level, yes. The spirit contains the soul of what was once a magnificent living dragon, does it really come to a surprise it too has a personality? In any event the better you can try to understand your spirit, the better chance you have at creating a harmonic bond and subsequent control. Remember, it picked you for a reason, so make that reason be known."

Zack couldn't' help but stifle a soft laugh.

"What?" Rose asked sharply.

"Nothing, nothing. I was just thinking that it feels like I have somehow gained a second mentor."

Rose frown at the idea of having the role of teacher thrust upon her, but a teacher it appeared she was once more destined to be.

"Don't rely on me" She cautioned. "When push comes to shove, it's your own strength you will need to depend on."

"Aye aye" Zack saluted as he began to make preparations for a mid-afternoon meal.

* * *

As days passed swiftly with like the ebb and flow of the tide around them, Rose's immobilizing injury also passed. Her healing process this time around came to no surprise to Zack, he had expected by the way she was on her feet again within three days of rehabilitation on the ship that she would make short work of the final stages of her recovery. She had, and was at this juncture able to move around freely, albeit with admitted discomfort. It was around that time that Rose decided it was time to teach Zack the more practical pointers on managing the power of the Dragoon.

The spot of teaching was the sandy coast of the bright city, far enough away so they wouldn't be spotted or disturbed, yet close enough so the exhausting trek back wouldn't be any more than a quarter of an hour.

Zack's progress was slow to begin with, painfully slow, and Rose found herself wondering if despite her knowledge he wouldn't be able to ever properly harness the power bestowed upon him. Zack mirrored her frustration, which only led to further complications.

"You need a clear head and mind for this exercise" Rose pointed out. It didn't seem to help, the more he failed the more it fueled his aggravation.

"Damn it" he said resigned. "I just can't do it. I can't find a way to siphon the essence of the spirit."

"Are you properly casting aside all fear and doubt?"

Zack agreed fiercely and she believed him. The problem seemed to lie elsewhere.

This perpetual lack of success lasted several days, until on one afternoon when the sun beating a burgundy red blazed the sky like it had been torched, Rose attempted a different approach.

"It's incredibly difficult to transform out of combat even for a veteran knight" Rose explained as she drew her rapier. "The spirit thrives on the sensations of combat, and as such it is during such situations that it is easiest to connect with the spirit."

Zack already knew where this was going and waved both his hands up in a stopping gesture. "Wait, I'm unarmed for one and I don't think this is going to do any good for my concen-"

"Too late!" Rose warned as she dashed towards him, quickly closing the small gap. She lashed out with her sword with premeditated precision, the blade only inches away from scalping Zack's skull. Zack ducked and rolled back a surprised grunt.

"You could have killed me!" he shrieked.

"And I likely will if you don't look lively" Rose cautioned once more, her eyes narrowing to a predatory gaze. She had no intention of killing him of course, her strikes were feint blows and unless he did something really stupid the worst he would get would be a light scratch. He obviously knew none of this; it would defeat the purpose if he did. Her face, a mask of impassiveness, showed no evidence of someone who wasn't intent on killing their target.

"How can I transform if I don't get the breathing room to concentrate?" he whined unhappily.

Rose moved in for another sweep, her long blade cleaving towards his chest. Now alert and ready, Zack was able to avoid it with a great deal of more ease. What he didn't expect was a follow up that nearly earned him a nice gash across his side.

"You think the enemy will sit back and give you the time to gather your energy?"

"Damn it" Zack cursed, running towards the sea to put some distance between them and get some respite. Rose however wasn't about it happen so easily. Despite her still not being one hundred percent, her agility far outmatched Zack's and she was upon him in moments. Zack did all he could to evade and fend off the rain of strikes and slashes, but one got through, slicing the top of his exposed arm (he was not at that point donning him armour, he thought he wouldn't have such a need for it). The wound was shallow, but Zack was surprised she actually intended to do him harm.

"You cut me!" he cried.

"Of course, I'm not playing around here. I suggest you work out fast how to transform." At the closing of her statement Rose's eyes glowered dangerously.

This time she went low, and instead of delivering an expected strike of her blade she delivered a swift kick to the back of Zack's exposed leg. The action caught him by surprise and unbalanced him, sending him crashing to his knees with a painful yelp.

"The enemy could have killed you dozens of times by now" Rose said coldly. Getting to his feet and glaring at Rose furiously, Zack's face turned to one of deep concentration, his jaw clenched, body tensed and brow deeply furrowed. As Rose moved once more towards him, particles of nearby energy began to gather. Rose abandoned her assault at once.

With the flow of sensations that only combat could generate Zack was able to tap into the reservoirs of his ancient Dragoon energies, which sparked and turned to embers which fizzled and exploded around him, engulfing him in a sphere of flame. Once it dispersed seconds later, Zack was floating slightly aloft in his, his body blazing like magma which cooled and set into a coat of magical red armour.

"I… did it" Zack huffed triumphant. Rose nodded, sheathing her blade.

"Try and hold it as long as you can. Remember the feelings you called upon to transform, remember the sensations you're feeling now."

Zack, who felt as drained as he did after his hike back to Rouge which grew with every passing second, closed his eyes, taking in every feeling and perception, some of which were his, many which were not. The internal struggle had begun where he would try and wrestle the destructive urges of his dragon counterpart and try to make them his own.

It only lasted several minutes, but to Zack it felt like hours. Once he felt he had exerted enough control that he wasn't about to go on a butchering frenzy, he released, his body changing back to his own.

Zack fell to the ground, panting heavily. Once given enough time to catch his air and wits, He sat up, glancing at the setting sun in front of him.

"I think I managed to control it, at least partially" Zack announced. His face was twisted into a look of great fatigue.

"That's all we can hope to do, really" Rose assured from behind him.

"Is it always that taxing?"

"To begin with, yes. As you grow in strength, so will your endurance."

"Guess this is all pretty elementary to you eh?"

"It's not as simple as I make it appear. Even after eleven thousand years, there are still secrets and answers to questions that even I do not know. They are queer entities the dragons, ones we cannot hope to ever completely understand."

Rose hunkered next to Zack for a time, both of them adrift in their own thoughts as they admired the sunset.

I've taught you all I can. The rest is up to you" Rose mused.

"I know." Zack replied, slowly turning his face, fixing his glance on Rose. Although she knew he was staring at her, she dared not return that stare; instead she continued to watch the clouds disperse in the distant twilight. Several seconds elapsed and she still notices through her peripheral vision that his gaze still laid on her, making her feel unnerved.

"Is something wrong?" Rose finally inquired, still not taking her eyes off the distant sky. She didn't know why she was being so evasive, and perhaps that was what was unsettling her most of all. Zack shook his head, as if to shake himself out of some sort of trance.

"No, nothing" he responded mildly. Rose was relieved to find he had turned his eyes elsewhere, although the atmosphere still made her feel far from comfortable. After a minute of silence, Rose decided she had had enough of the scenery.

"I think we should head back" she advised, getting up to her feet. Zack did the same, still staring at the horizon.

"I'll be another minute of two, you go on ahead."

"Suit yourself" Rose replied, making her way back to the Inn. When she had gained a fair amount of distance Rose turned her head slightly, only to see Zack still hadn't moved, his attention transfixed on something in the distance. As if somehow aware he was being scrutinized Zack turned his eyes to meet hers, yet what she saw behind the usual jovial hazel was not the carefree regard she had grown accustomed to but one of deep sadness and longing, peppered with grief and helplessness. All in all the end result was a truly melancholy sensitivity that appeared to have pushed past his buoyant mask. The expression seared into her mind like a sorrowful painting that was both striking for its captured beauty as well as its depressing quality. The reason this of all things captivated her was perhaps because staring into his mournful face was like staring in a mirror, it reminded Rose of herself in a frightening sort of way.

_Perhaps he's not as innocent as I initially believed _Rose wondered. _That, or the weight of this conflict is beginning to crush him. _

She didn't know how long they had stared into one another, but only came back to earth when Zack forced a rather unhappy smile, a smile looked the to be the furthest thing from a smile if you could describe it that way. Although the gesture touched his thin lips, it touched his eyes not a bit. Zack was the one to eventually break the eye contact, slowly making his way up to meet Rose.

Rose could not find a way to justify how she was feeing at that point. She was caught between feeling pity and sadness, two emotions she hadn't spared for anyone in many long years. After one has butchered men, women and children for eleven thousand years, decimating towns and lying waste to zealot defenders, pity and sadness were usually two things you forgot pretty damn fast. But watching him slowly walk towards her with a face that resembled anguish and a jaded outlook far beyond his years had made her feel both. Pity for what he, who was a sensitive soul by nature, is now forced to endure, and sadness for the lost innocence that would be claimed for the illusion of peace.

_This is the real word. Grim, uncaring and most of all unforgiving. _

They slowly trudged their way back to the Inn, an uneasy silence prevented either of them from verbalizing their internal thoughts. When they eventually made it back, Rose found herself relieved to find that Zack had done away with the somber like expression, replacing it with his usual sanguine persona.

"I'll make some dinner" Zack offered as they entered.

"I'll make it this time" Rose countered placidly. Zack maneuvered towards her, feeling a little surprised at the offer, she hadn't presented such a proposal before.

"You can cook?" Rose nodded.

"One cannot be a vagabond for eleven-thousand years without being able to accomplish the basics of gathering and cooking."

Zack shrugged in agreement. "Then I'll take a quick shower while you cook dinner." Rose gave him the okay, and watched him disappear up the stairs that led into the solitary bathroom that housed the shower as she set about the tasks that needed to be initiated.

Her mind was once more free to drift as her hands were busy with food preparations and she found herself wondering once more about her old comrades and their assault on Kazas. Any attempt to approach the topic with Wen only led to indirect responses, although whether calculated or he really didn't know Rose wasn't quite able to work out. Either way she decided that she would figure it out for herself soon, one way or the other.

As Rose neared completion of her cooking duties, Zack meanwhile finished his showing and preoccupied himself with the cleaning of his clothes and the sorting of his equipment. It was a rudimentary task, but one that felt to his worn body one of great effort. Struggling to remaining conscious and only doing so for the promise of Rose's cooking, an opportunity he wasn't going to miss no matter how tied he was, Zack finished his own tasks and moved downstairs, ready for what he expected to be a fabulous meal.

Dinner was already served by the time Zack descended the wooden stairs, the food laid out on two white plates sat atop a mahogany table, both provided by the Inn. A cooked sirloin along with an assortment of green and white vegetables decorated the plate, the aroma delicious enough to make Zack's mouth water.

So this is a bit of Rose's cookery eh? I'm impressed" he announced eagerly.

"No need to make a big deal about it" Rose scoffed half heartedly. Zack took his fork, stabbed it into the steak, then used his knife to cut a rather large chuck out of it, quickly opening his mouth to devour the piece of meat he had sliced.

Rose watched him slowly chomp away at the meat, examining its content and taste as if some great food connoisseur making a judgment on a fancy dish. When Zack swallowed, he raised his thumb up, beaming happily.

"This kind of cooking nearly rivals even mine!" Zack exclaimed, quickly ripping another piece of meat. Rose found herself smiling again, something she was doing all too easily of late. Zack appeared to be too engaged in filling his stomach to take any notice of this small slip however. Rose then quickly began to eat down her own food, albeit with a little more grace than the eating machine next to her.

"That was delicious" Zack announced after he finished demolishing his plate of food. Rose only ate two thirds of what was on her plate, deciding she didn't need to eat any more.

"I'll clean up, since you took the liberty to cook" Zack offered, grabbing their plates and placing them in the sink. Feeling the sharp tendrils of wariness clutch her own body, Rose was not in a position to refuse. Belly adequately filled, her body sought the next logical step in recovery: rest.

"You should go clean yourself up" Zack suggested. Rose agreed, excused herself and headed up the stairs towards the shower.

While she was busy showering, her mind continued to wonder. The warm sprinkles of water over her already heated body made her feel a little light headed. Enduring the passing feeling of brief vertigo, Rose gave her body the only decent wash in weeks, scouring extra hard to do away with any residue dirt or odors. This action prompted more questions to her ever active mind: Why was she so worried about such insignificant details as being stainless? Sure, she was a woman, even if only by appearance, she left behind most of her femininity thousands of years ago and yes, she of course preferred to be clean when the opportunity presented itself as most people did but… why so much detail? Why was she scrubbing from head to toe as if to extinguish any minor blemish or impurity? Why had she spent the better part of twenty minutes as opposed to the usual five in which was all it took to keep her adequately clean?

She knew the answer of course; it was the presence of another person, a male specifically. It wasn't really that odd, despite her best efforts to remove anything resembling womanly virtues she had still retained some. It was the same when she started to adventure with Dart, Lavitz and Shana when they grouped at Hoax. Despite how you became quickly accustomed to being far from immaculate in the presence of another when you both travelled the outside wilderness where luxuries like showers or even lakes to bathe in became a rarity, she did like to look and feel clean when the opportunity presented itself, her vanity not being completely disregarded by the passing of time. But was that all there was to it? She felt that these was more, and could probably find more if she dug a little deeper, but something stopped her. Was it fear? Trepidation that there may be more then appears on the ambiguous surface?

_No. I'm over thinking things is all. And tired as well to make it all worse. I'll be fine after I get a good night sleep._

At least that what she hoped but for now she pushed such megrims away, they would do her no good. Stepping out of the shower and drying herself quickly she slipped into her temporary night clothes that Zack had bought on their first day of shopping, the soft cotton a somehow liberating change from her usual garments.

"I'm going to bed" Rose informed Zack as pushed down the halfway point of the stairs, moving no further.

"Yeah, I might do the same when I finish washing up here" Zack agreed while he washed his washing duties. "Sleep well, I'll see you tomorrow. Oh and thanks for the meal." He offered another one of his somehow infectious smiles. Rose, who only had half her frame protruding out from the stairwell nodded silently. The image of his earlier solemn expression resurfaced in her mind and she momentarily felt compelled to question him about it, to find out what he had endured that could cause such unrestrained grief. But she swatted the idea away, turned heel and disappeared up the stairs. It was no business of hers and the last thing she would need would be more topics to mull over in her mind, god knows she has enough of those already. Sleep would be the perfect respite from her vacillating mind.


	10. Chapter 10: Capture and Pursuit

**Chapter 10: Capture and Pursuit **

Zack made his way to bed after finishing the reminder of his cleaning chores, his body heavy with the weight of his weariness that felt might soon crush him if he couldn't get his much needed reprieve. By the time he reached his bed, which was all too enticing to put off any longer, he fell onto the soft mattress with a soft thump and drifted away along the winds of sleep a few minutes thereafter.

Unfortunately for him his blissful rest would be short lived.

As the dead of night fell, the echoes of soft, yet still noticeable scuffling resounded from what sounded like the bottom floor. At first content to ignore it and fall back asleep, the muffled sounds grew progressively louder until they exploded into a crashing wave of undeniable activity. Violent activity it sounded like.

Shaking himself out of his haze, Zack sat upright, gripped his nearby spear and moved into the hallway.

Rose was already awake and ready, her rapier drawn by her side, her ears and eyes towards the source of the sound downstairs, which had grown more urgent. The lack of her usual dark attire made the situation somehow comical to Zack, who under other circumstances would let out a snicker and a pert remark or two, but he knew the time for jokes were over. There were definitely intruders in the room, who weren't here to simply parlay

Rose meanwhile decided she'd conceal herself against the wall closest to the door archway at the top of the stairs like a prowling cat so if the intruders were meaning harm, which she was sure they did, she'd be able to flank them. Her silver sword gleamed dangerously in the gloom, as if hungry for human flesh and blood.

Then everything went quiet. Deadly quiet. Too quiet. Zack moved closer to the stairs to see if he could detect any kind of activity, but his ears could discover none. By the look of Rose's own focused features he guessed she didn't either. As the minutes passed with no further sound, Zack began to move down the stairs, intending to examine more closely. He felt a hand reach out and grasp his shoulder, to which Zack wheeled around and found Rose shaking her head.

Zack gave a silent thumbs up. _I got this _it said, and he ignored Rose's sour look of objection. Moving as silently as his limbs would allow, he squinted his still adjusting eyes to detect any movement. When he could not identify any he felt his heart rate jump, his nerves faltering.

_I have a bad feeling about this…_

As Zack breasted the bottom step he quietly fumbled for a light switch. He wasn't surprised when he the click was met with no illumination. The power had been cut.

_A definite ambush. Shit, they'll be after Rose._

Zack craned his neck towards the top of the stairs, but that proved a big mistake. Any chance at detecting the shadow the descended upon his front side in that instant disappeared, and all he felt was an impact dazzle the back of his head, his body moving involuntarily towards the wooden floor below. His vision went black before he felt the subsequent impact.

* * *

Rose heard the crash, heard the surprised grunt, and knew it came from her companion. Abandoning the idea of concealment, Rose dashed down the stairs as fast as her careful feet would allow (which, under the circumstances of just being woken coupled with the almost pitch black setting, was impressively quick). She reached the second last step when she felt something sweep her feet out from under her and she too feel towards the hard floorboards below, but like a cat that lands on its feet, she managed to sprawl her legs and arms out to avoid losing her equilibrium entirely. Taking a second to move from all fours back to a vertical basis, Rose was immediately swamped by veiled attacks, raining blows against her unprotected body with what felt like blunt objects or fists. Scooting away to gain momentary refuge from the onslaught, Rose shouldered past the wooden door and spilled into the narrow hallway connecting the many rooms. The lights were cut in the hallway as well, but it wasn't the darkness that worried her. She was plenty adept at fighting in blackness, all she needed was a moment to gain her bearings, which she managed to do thanks to the distance she created.

The first enemy unfortunate enough to follow was impaled by her sword. She removed it and kicked the dying corpses back into the room, where it fell with a loud crash. Rose waited for another foolish enough to try and get past the guarded doorway, her body coiled like a serpent ready to strike, but none came. She could still hear plenty of movement from inside, but they were hurried and sounded somehow fleeting.

_Are they retreating already? _Rose wondered. If so, these assassins were a lot smarter than the last platoon.

Then it hit her. _Zack_! Caught momentarily between staying hidden or exposing herself, possibly moving into a trap, Rose threw caution into the wind and stepped inside, moving around the fallen carcass. They were indeed retreating, climbing out the lounge room window one at a time, and by the time Rose knew what was going on, only one assailant remained. He dipped towards his waist and tossed something towards her which she deflected with the face of her blade.

No matter, it served as only a distraction so the shadowy figure could join his team in their withdrawal.

Knowing what had likely happened but hoping against hope it didn't, Rose moved slowly and carefully towards the window, mindful of another attack. She nearly slipped on what she identified to be blood, and it wasn't the person's blood she killed. Unless Zack managed to wound one of them, it was his. The blood trailed to the open window which the unknown enemy escaped from not minutes before. She ducked her head out carefully to try and spy them moving in any particular direction, but all that loomed in front of her was a still blackness.

Rose swept the rooms in case they managed to kill Zack in a scuffle and toss the body, but she knew that wasn't going to be the case. She found his discarded spear, but that was all. They had taken him, not her but him, and by the way they fled the moment they had she knew it a calculated move. They were likely baiting her, using what they perceived as her only weakness.

By this stage nearby citizens who heard the commotion had come to investigate the incident. She spent the rest of the night explaining to the mayor what had transpired during the night. Outside the person she had killed the only casualty was the unfortunate inn keeper, who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Some of the townspeople who had come to investigate the disturbance bore lanterns, which Rose and the mayor used to try and indentify their attackers.

Much like the previous squadron they were masked and geared completely in black. Rose removed the headgear as well as shed most of his leather clothing to try and discern any kind of insignia or mark that would denote who they were or where they had come from, but they bore no such motifs. Mercenaries likely it seemed, and while she in all probability wouldn't be wrong to assume this was Sandora's doing, she may be wrong to assume they would take him back there. If taking him back was what they intended, for all she knows they're only use for him was to lure out, in which case they may kill him by dawn. In either case without any marks she had no way to be sure of either.

Without much else to do, the mayor blasted her for bringing such ruffians to they're peaceful little hub.

"You're to leave the first thing in the morning you understand?" the elder leader urged strongly. "God knows what else you'll bring if you stay." Rose agreed without complain and disappeared inside. She spent the next few hours until sunrise deciding on what her next course of action should be.

* * *

Wen arrived early the next morning.

Rose, who was busy packing what little belongings she had stockpiled into a knapsack (it mostly consisted of food and water, although among them was Zack's Red-Eyed Dragoon Spirit which he had obviously left in his rush to check the commotion), saw the elder commander approach the entrance where until recently the door had once been. He looked worse for wear to say the least, his lined features were full of bruised and sores, as if his face was a kind of human piñata.

"You don't look too much better than I" Wen started, noticing the wounds she sustained from the unknown intruders. "What happened? Where is Zack?"

"We were ambushed in our sleep. They took Zack and retreated to places unknown" Rose said flatly, then returned her attention to gathering the last of her provisions.

"This is… disheartening news" Wen said regretfully. "Unfortunately I am also the bearer of more bad news."

Rose turned to him and regarded the elder man evenly. "_What _bad news?" She inquired harshly. At that moment Wen looked very uncomfortable.

"The raid was a failure, most of the attack force either captured or executed…"

Rose watched him in disbelief. "Impossible. You had a small squad of Dragoons; they would have had nothing that could withstand the force of one, let alone a group."

"That's what I thought too. A big mistake it appears, because they have something and not just hybrids either. They have something big, big enough to subdue not only hundreds of my best men but a group of Dragoon Knights as well."

"Impossible" Rose restated. "Anything less than an equal amount of Virages couldn't pull off something like that.

"I can't rightly say what did it, I'm going off the words of a dying soldier here. All he said was that the enemy was able to turn their allies against them. If they could do that and said enemy was a Dragoon Knight…"

"It still seems inconceivable" Rose muttered, but it was the only answer that made any remote sense. If they did have a way to turn the Dragoon Knights upon themselves then…

"I have to go" Rose said, hurrying her supply gathering.

"Where?" Wen asked.

"Where do you think? To Kazas" she said impatiently.

"You can't!" he pressed, grabbing her shoulder. She shrugged the contact away, eyes narrowing dangerously. "I can damn well do what I please; I am not a member of your half baked faction to control. In case you forgot, Zack was taken and is likely headed for the same destination for torture or worse."

"You can't know that for sure Rose, can't you see it's a trap? They expect you to storm Kazas, they'll be waiting. If they can disable numerous Dragoon Knights, who are not to mention among some of the best warriors this world has seen, then your odds of success are next to nil at best."

_Now those are odds I can live with _she thought absently. Her mind was made up.

"Damn it Rose, you're being reckless, the one thing I thought you weren't."

"If what you say is true then all is likely lost anyway, so we have nothing else to lose. Retreating and hiding like scared animals will do us no good."

Wen sighed, resigned to her decision. "Is there no way I can dissuade you? Give me time, I can do some reconnaissance, figure out the situation and we can attack with a plan."

"That'll take too long. Zack will only be kept alive for so long, and if what you say is true about Dart and the others, I will need to figure out what method they are using to control them and break it."

"You'll get yourself killed, and that will be doing neither Zack nor your comrades any service."

Rose swept towards him eyes ablaze. "So what? You suggest we abandon them and leave them to their fate? Are you not a commander? Does the responsibility not fall on you to do what's best for your people?"

"Yes it does" Wen said calmly. "But running a suicide escapade will not help anyone. What will happen, will happen, the best we can do is not do what they are expecting and that is another attack."

_Am I cursed with cowards? _Rose wondered. There was truth to his words she supposed, but they had nothing to wait for. If the Dragoon warriors fell, then they had no aces up their sleeves, and they may as well lay down their lives. Plus, whether she liked it or not she also had a debt to repay to Zack.

"I'm going, my mind is set, so you can either continue this pointless discussion of dissuasion or assist me."

"Kazas has been on high alert since our attack; it won't be simple to just waltz into the castle without detection."

"I'll manage" the dark warrior responded without much thought. Wen fell silent for a time, apparently resigned to the thought of Rose's outrageous objective.

"I'll offer what help I can then. It won't be much, I can't help you storm the castle nor do I have men to spare for support, but what I can offer is transport. I can ferry you into Serdio as close to Sandora as possible, although it'll still be a few days from Kazas no doubt, Sandora patrol Serdio's water diligently. From there you can use the steed I rode in on; she is a fine mare and will grant you swift passage the rest of the way."

"That will be enough" Rose said with a nod. Wen watched her pleadingly. "Just make sure you come back alive, and bring back Zack if possible."

"I will" Rose said with a stoic confidence she didn't really feel.

* * *

Rose finished amassing what meager equipment she could and set off on the Poseidon once more within the hour. Paula was as reluctant as Wen was when it came to shipping towards the costal sea of Serdio, Sandora was always in possession of a strong fleet during the worst of times, now bolstered with numbers that comprised of many who were beyond human capabilities, the captain needed a great deal of convincing to brave the journey. In the end of course he had, while Rose wasn't the best when it came to words or coaxing or enticement, she was very proficient in the art of intimidation. Shrinking under the glowering eyes of a woman who had iced many warriors both strong and weak, Paula agreed to take her as far as the Alganian Shore, a few miles north east of Lohan situated in the northern province of Sandora. It was still going to be a heck of a journey travelling from north across to south, a few days to be sure, perhaps as long as a week or more if she were waylaid, but she was thankful she didn't have to start her journey anew from Donau.

Paula even offered a map, and while she was in no way unfamiliar with the territories of Sandora (or Serdio as a whole for that matter), like all things it was an ever changing landscape and knowing which direction to plot for in advance would certainly do her no harm. Sandora was comprised of a smaller territory compared to Basil which dominated the north eastern half, the province's length and girth one and a half times larger, but Sandora, shaped like a like a skewed diamond to the south, had the protection of only being entered by water or the border above which separated the two regions (Basil had the added danger of the barbarians from the mostly uncharted mist peaks to the further east). Studying the map closely, Rose thought she would traverse the western parameter of the expanse where the jutting slopes looked to be a good cover. She would remain close enough inland that she wouldn't be spotted by any sentry ships that may happen to pass, yet not too far inland so to avoid most of the smaller towns and outpost that would likely be in the firm grip of the Sandorian army. It was still a long shot, but she would have to take it to have any hope at getting to the Black Castle undetected.

By nightfall, Tiberoa was in their rearview and what now felt like the hostile land of Serdio faced them threateningly. Rose, who was adrift in thought as she so often was, stood on top of the deck, admiring the passing scenery in the event it would be her last opportunity to do so. She noticed the stark change of the two continents immediately, one half of the border arid and desolate, the other half lush and teeming with visible life form. It was rather eerie to admire such a disparity of two lands so close to another. The terrain wasn't the only change either, the weather too shifted as soon as they crossed into Serdian territory, thick clouds converging on the deep blue sky promising not so distant rainfall.

"We won't be able to venture too much further" Wen informed from behind her. "The radar is detecting plenty of activity beyond, and we cannot afford to get caught. I suggest you finish preparations, perhaps get a bit of shut eye before you begin your endeavor."

Rose affirmed the latest information with her usual silent nod.

"Take this also" the green veteran offered, extending his hand and presenting a scroll of rolled parchment.

Rose took it and opened it promptly. "A map?"

"Of the castle, yes. I know you've visited in the past, but I thought it may also do you well to refresh your memory of all the nooks and crannies. Plus, it has the known traps and garrisons my forces were able to discern, so I hope it will come to you of some help."

"… Thank you" Rose murmured; unexpectedly surprise how accommodating he was proving. He smiled hopefully.

"I know to you it seems I'm not a great leader, I seem to be absent or unhelpful when it matters most, but I do care about the boy, he is like a son to me. I have also marked on the Endiness map Paula will give to you to keep before you leave a small camp of soldiers who participated in the battle. A lot are wounded and dispirited, but if they are able and willing, you may be able to persuade them to venture fourth with you to the castle once more. Many of them lost friends and family, a chance for vengeance will not be passed by I wouldn't imagine."

"Understood" Rose responded, although whether she liked the idea of having a group of tagalongs that were more likely to blow any chance of espionage Rose wasn't sure. With a final nod Wen disappeared back down stairs, leaving her to spend the last leg of the beginning of the journey alone.

_Stay alive Zack, I'm coming._

* * *

It was dark, damp, and most of all rancid with the smell of rotting and dead flesh. There were no windows or openings that would allow any natural light to spill into the confines of his barred cell, the rusted iron a lot stronger then its worn appearance led on, only a single burning lamp that offered only dim radiance. He was in one of numerous iron cells that lined the prison in rows on each side, a thin corridor the only thing separating the two string of holding cubicles. Besides that, the area fell into obscurity and Zack could see no more, although judging by the stagnant liquid that seeped from the cracks in the worn ceiling, Zack guessed he was at the very least underground.

He had been awake only a couple of hours, and after frantically trying to find a way of escape, he sat on the small damaged metal bench that was situated across from the only other appliance in an otherwise empty cell: A busted, old, dirty toilet.

Left with nothing else but to conserve energy and contemplate his future, Zack thought furiously on what he may have to endure. He expected torture or perhaps some kind of interrogation or at worst an execution, but none of those had yet come to pass. That didn't mean they wouldn't of course, and while Zack couldn't know how much time had passed or how long he had been imprisoned, no one had come to fetch him or even acknowledge his existence. No additional injuries save for the one on the back of his head indicated he had undergone no physical harm while he was unconscious, and the longer it took for him to receive any kind of attention from the enemy, the more foreboding his thoughts became.

_Perhaps I'm simply left here to rot, unforgotten like the other corpses in this place… _he tried to shake the thought out of his mind, but it was difficult. He wasn't sure where exactly he was, he knew it wasn't Hellena so he assumed, if it was indeed Sandora who had caught him (he didn't think it would be anyone else) that he was in the prison beneath the Black Castle. But then that would mean he was unconscious for days or weeks, given how long it would take to traverse back that deep into Sandora from where he was captured, and that much time cannot have elapsed because without water or food he'd be dead. He felt a little hungry and thirsty now, but not desperately so. At most he thought he may have been out for a day or two, so if not Kazas then where?

_Somewhere unknown and centuries old given the look of this place _Zack thought miserably. Any hopes at being miraculously saved had abandoned him.

_Dammit why didn't I keep my Dragoon Spirit on me? _But would that really make the situation any better? Surely they searched him for any possible weapons or tools before they tossed him into this pit of cold hell. Then whoever captured him would have the added advantage of being in possession of a Dragoon Spirit.

Zack shook his head, frustration boiling. _How could I be so easily caught? I should have listened to Rose and been more careful… _then his mind drifted to her. Would she find him? Would she even try and find him? Would Wen or anyone else even try?

Feeling his spirit crumble with each passing second, Zack curled on the bench, rested his head in between his raised knees and began to hope and pray for a way out.

* * *

Galloping onwards on Wen's dark steed aptly named Dasher, for it was a quick mare even among the faster horses Rose had ridden upon during her time; she had left the beach they had harbored into, the golden sands of the Alganian Shore, a strip of yellow and blue in the brightening twilight. Dawn was approaching, and with it she would lose the shroud of darkness that acted as an extra layer of protection against detection. They're progress in the beginning was slow, the sinking sand giving the large horse trouble in attaining any great speed, but once they moved onto the spanning grass and twisting paths that seemed to run in each direction, Dasher really began to prove why he was named so. Keeping the compass Paula offered to her close by, Rose melted into the distant bushy hill like a hunter utilizing camouflage, the thick trees and dense shrubs offering plenty of sanctuary. It wasn't just soldiers or Sandorian spies she was worried about, if what Wen said was true and she had a sizable bounty on her surely well known head, then anyone bandit or peasant brave enough to try and claim her life would act as a hindrance as well, and hindrances were the last thing she would need on the race against the clock.

The risk of veering away from the man made paths into more rural settings had its own risks of course, wild animals looking to feast on a fine buck and rider, the risk of losing direction which was easy when the surrounding scenery was hard to differentiate, but most of all she was wary of anything that could wound or damage her steed. While the surroundings were green filled with many beautiful plains and woods, they were also damp with many swamps and deceptively shallow mires that could be hiding outcropping or other debris that, if the horse struck hard enough unawares, could snap a leg or cause herself injury from the horse rolling on its side. For that reason she pushed the horse fast, but not too fast, she could ill afford a broken mount.

The only other difficulty she faced, at least this early in the journey, were roaming monsters that inhabited the marshes, forests and open plains, preying on the unwary and weak. Most proved to be of little deterrence, only few could hope to match the speed of Dasher as he strode across the countryside with the ease of a animal who has done such all its life, and the ones that did were easily dispatched on horseback with a slash of her sword or a quick blast of magic. But the fiend were far and in-between, for most of her first day long journey her only enemy was the changing environment around her, which at times was cooperative, but most times not, making her traverse across great rivers or gorges that lacked access for both her and Dasher to cross. This only added more time on the journey, but Rose supposed it was inevitable. All in all she was making good progress, not great so far but good, and by the time night fell she figured she'd be close to a quarter of the way through if her navigation was correct, and if she was a little lucky. Luck, Rose came to realise, was something she would be relying on a lot as the journey progressed.

* * *

Zack tried all he could over the next day and night to get some sleep, but none came. Worrying too much about his fate which seemed all but set in stone, his mined worked furiously think of an escape plan, not resigned to simply lay down and die. His initial efforts were met with no results; he scaled the cell for any weak spots he may be able to dig or crumble, but despite it old, decrepit appearance, it was firm and he could find no weaknesses in the metal floors or bars or the earthy walls to the rear. He then moved on to try gain a nearby guards attention, he screamed and yelled that he was sick, bitten by something poisonous and dying, but after an hour of ranting, his voice cracked and fading, he got not one response. Either they were the most patient sentries in existence, or, more likely they were none posted at all. His heart sank at the idea. If there were no guards, then he really was left here to die a slow and miserable death.

After his mind drifted somewhere into what was not strictly slumber, but not wakeful either, echoing footsteps of steel getting stronger and stronger sounded down the hall in the darkness. Zack was on his feet in a flash, his face pushed against the bars.

Whoever it was stopped suddenly at the edge of the darkness where the faint lamp didn't illuminate, and for a time he said nothing. Zack, not wanting to show any sign of fear or hesitation, remained silent as well as they engaged in a silent standoff.

"Welcome Zack, I hope you're enjoying the accommodation I picked out especially for you." He still hid in the cloak of darkness, and his voice, as far as Zack could tell, was rough, unfamiliar to his own memory, yet somehow smooth as well. Engaging, as if he were not a prisoner but a companion this man knew all his life.

"Oh yeah, I love it" Zack retorted sardonically. "Great view, beautiful atmosphere, and great amenities" Zack gestured to the broken toilet. "I was thinking of living here you know, suits my style."

The unknown presence chuckled in good nature. "I'm glad to see you think it so wonderful. It just so has it that you can, in a sense, think it your new home, you will he spending an extended time here."

Rather than continue with mockery, Zack attempted a different angle. "So, it appears I'm at a disadvantage, you know who I am…"

The presence laughed softly once more. "Who I am matters not, just know that I know who you are, and you don't know me, not really anyway."

Zack didn't know if the final part of his sentence was an intentional slip or not, but he took a mental note all the same. _Not really anyway…_

"I don't suppose you plan to tell me just where in the hell I am either?"

"No, no I'm not" he said plainly, as if he should already know this. "Just know you are somewhere where no one will find you."

"Well then, if you don't mind perhaps we can skip the bullshit and get to the part where you tell me the reason you've taken the time out of your busy schedule to visit pretty old me?"

The man finally stepped forward into the pale light. Zack wasn't surprised to see he was hidden beneath a veil of clothing that resembled a cloak and hood, covering all his features. What he did have in his hands however that took Zack's attention was a tray with bowls of food and water. He placed it at the bottom of the bars where there was a gap small enough to allow food and water, but not large enough that even a small child could crawl through. Once the hooded figure was bent over, just finishing placing the tray of food and water down, Zack shot out one hand past the gap in the bars, intending to grab his visitor and at least reveal his identity. This act however, seemed expected, as the figure in the cloak sprung backwards away from the cell with the agility and quickness that Zack didn't think Rose could match. Zack had no hope of even laying a finger on him.

"Now now" the man said admonishingly as he withdrew into the shadows. "I was being nice and feeding you; don't upset me unless you wish me to leave you here to rot."

"Why?" Zack asked suspiciously. "Why are you feeding me?"

"So you conserve your strength of course. I have big things planned for you my boy, big things indeed, so you'll need all the strength you can muster." With a final, sinister laugh that echoed across the halls (and would continue to echo in his head for many hours later), the cloaked man disappeared, leaving Zack to contemplate the latest events.

Staring at the food a time longer, Zack shrugged and leaned in and extracted a small bowl of soup. It only just fit under the bars to Zack's surprise, and the enticing aroma set his stomach afire.

_I doubt its poison_ Zack thought with certainty. _By the way he spoke; he really does have things planned for me. _But what? There was no way at this point in time he could know. What he could do however was eat, drink, sleep, and conserve his strength as requested. He would wait for an opportunity, any opportunity. The man in the hood appeared calculating, but haughty, verging on hubris. He got the strong sense he thought Zack a simpleton. But it would pan out in his favour, better the mysterious presence think him a dullard so he's not as cautious as he would otherwise be, and wait for a fatal slip up that he felt sure was to come.

With those liberating thoughts in mind, he ate, drank and slept.

* * *

Rose meanwhile travelled and travelled and travelled some more. In the following two and a half days on top of her first, Rose made better progress, once she slipped pasting the windings slopes and dense forestry she and her chestnut stallions were met with open fields that allowed Dasher to push to full speeds. To her delight there were no interruptions, few monsters and she managed to navigate past the small outpost without much wasted time. The weather, which alternated from rainy, cloudy and rainy once more, stalled them not at all. In fact Rose thought the bouts of frequent rain refreshed them and pushed them with renewed efforts.

But as the third day and night merged into a fourth, Dasher began to falter. It was in part to lack of constant food and water Rose supposed, but mainly due to lack of rest. They got four to six hours of sleep a night, and after nearly twelve to fourteen hours of fierce riding, that much downtime just wasn't enough to replenish lost energy. Rose felt a little bad for the horse, but could spare no consideration. If she rode it into exhaustion then so be it, it was a risk she would have to take.

Dasher however had a big heart, and while he could now ride no quicker than a notch above a brisk trot, it never gave into exhaustion no matter how hard Rose pushed. The stallion's determination it seemed mirrored her own, and for that Rose had grown to respect the horse in a way she had no other.

Her thoughts, as always were free to drift during the uneventful parts of the days and nights. Mostly it rested upon one of three topics: breaking into the Black Castle, her band of former comrades and Zack. Of the latter she found herself worrying more and more that she may be wrong, that there was no way they could have carted him back Kazas so quickly, but she didn't factor in until later the innate magic of the Winglies. If the hybrids were anything like their pure counterparts who were able to keep entire cities suspended above the clouds, an ever present display of their domination over the land dwellers, then teleportation wasn't out of the question. In the end it didn't matter, she had already set course, and even if he wasn't there, if she could free Dart and the rest of her allies, then she would have a better chance at finding out where.

As the fourth day looked to come to a close, Rose felt her resolve as well as meager hope begin to diminish. For days she had seen nothing but the same countryside span out all around her, no sign of towns or even wayward adventurers or bandits. Rose pulled out the map for what felt like the hundredth time that hour, and studied it closely. If she was where she thought she was, then the Black Castle, the dominating figure of all Sandora that emerged like a sinister shadow, should be a prominent sight considering how close she ought to be. Yet all she saw were mountains, trees and the blue horizon extending out endlessly.

_Did I veer off at some point? Perhaps I'm not as close as I had initially thought?_

In the end she could only do one thing: Continue forward. And so she did, pushing on with grim determination until only scant rays which were more an afterglow than any actual sunlight shone overhead and she finally spotted what she had been looking for most of the day, or rather something she had been looking at all along but not knowing what it actually was. It was understandable, from a distance the edifice resembled a giant mountain and it wasn't until you got closer that the smaller details were recognizable like the spiraling and twisting of the outer towers wrapping around the main body like twin snakes, the emblemized sigil of Sandora draped over many parts like a giant standard. Looking at its gloomy stature, even from a distance such as hers never failed to prickle the body's nerves. It wasn't quite fear or trepidation, just nerves, and it was after all a structure that was very deserving of its apt title.

Rose was still a good half a day's journey she estimated at the speed she was moving at, and she wanted a final respite before attempting to gain entry into what would be an almost impenetrable fortress. So, she rode a few miles longer in the dark, intending to look for the small camp that Wen marked if possible (she decided some help would be better than none, if nothing else the soldiers could be a good distraction) and she would rest the remainder of the night, invading the castle at dawn. Why did she pick dawn? She didn't know, as always she was responding to her instinct, and she felt an assault during daylight would be foolhardy, and something told her that she didn't have the time to wait until another nightfall.

When Rose happened upon the small camp however it wasn't what she was expecting. She pulled Dasher to a stop a few yards from the camp site, which had consisted of tents, a campfire which was now nothing more than embers, and more importantly a pile of dead that numbered perhaps up to twenty bloodied soldiers. A battle had taken place, and by the looks of it Wen's remaining faction members didn't get the better of the encounter.

_Did Sandora hunt the people that fled? _She wondered, but by the look of the massacre it was as if they were jumped by monsters. Rose scoped the darkness around her. She would move around the carnage, she could ill afford to be spotted so soon, but first she had to be sure the coast was clear. She was still a good distance from Kazas, and she didn't want to have to trek the remainder on foot if her horse managed to get injured or killed in a struggle. As best she could tell no one or no creature lingered, but there was no way to be sure. Drawing her sword silently, she moved slowly back towards her steed.

"Ye best be leavin' ye any valuables on the ground right 'dere missy" a cold voice commanded as she felt the point of something sharp press against the middle of her back.

Rose rotated her head a little so she could glimpse the one foolish enough to not kill her outright when they had the chance.

"An' drop that big pig sticker down nice and slow." Rose could feel and smell the rancid breath of a man who hadn't heard of the term oral care in a long time, if ever. His accent was rough and thick.

Rose complied, slowly placing her rapier on the dirt beneath her.

The man, if you could call it that, his small, hunched frame was shorter than hers cackled a shrill laugh before he pushed his nose an inch from the back of her neck a took a long, inhaling sniff.

"Ye look to be the one plastered over all the wanted posters in town. Quite a promised sum is involved for ye head on a platter." the stranger said, his head turning behind him. Although it repulsed the dark warrior she remained still, sizing up the situation. The balding hunchback behind her was armed with a knife, that much she could tell as she felt the point push against her back, and by the way he called behind him he obviously had comrades. From what she spotted he was ill equipped however beyond that, only scarce rags of what once might have been clothing barely covering his torso and legs.

Then more voices whispered from the distance, moving in closer. Three more outlaws moved forward, one female, the other two male. They all looked sickly and frail; sores covering their pale faces that appeared so thin you could almost see their eye sockets. Deteriorating, patchy hair covered their heads and bodies, their skin flecked with red and white scales and scabs.

"Now, ye belongings, I would like to see them emptied on the ground now. Be snappy, it doesn't really matter to us if we have to pry them off your dead corpse or not." Another cackle, that broke into a fit of coughing.

Rose bent down to her knees, and shoved hands into her waist belt, as if she were doing as instructed. The point o the dagger followed, but with unsteady, trembling hands. This was going to be all too easy.

"I'd like to warn you before all of this gets messy. You're going to regret this" Rose advised with a calm composure which one shouldn't feel when threatened at knife point.

"Unless ye want to end up like those poor, butchered folks behind ye, I suggest you quit with the empty threats."

Rose detected a hint of falsity in his tone. The situation was already going well off plan, and as the woman fixed what appeared to be the leader of the quartet an icy stare that was devoid of any fear or fake bravado, he only felt control slip further.

Rose then made her move. She sprang forward from her knees, rolling forward and creating a needed gap. The leader gasped unexpectedly, but before he could regain his own wits Rose was already up, her sword raised (which she had regained as she during her dexterous act of acrobatics).

"I'll give you a tip: If you're going to hold someone at knife point, make sure you do so in a fashion that doesn't allow a quick and easy escape." Her tone was as cold as the deep, unrelenting blue of her eyes. The other three bandits, armed with nothing more than knives or makeshift clubs, moved to the leader's defense.

"Don't be underestimatin' us lass!" he bellowed furiously. "We killed a camp of armed soldiers!"

Rose didn't respond but had her doubts. Four barely armed bandits that could only pray on the defenseless weren't likely to be able to slay a group of trained, albeit injured fighters, even if they did have the element of surprise. No, something else had slaughtered the soldiers, that much was clear. All these scavengers were doing was using the sight in hopes to gain an intimidation factor they wouldn't otherwise have had.

The tallest, dark skinned least sickly of the group lunged forward, his wooden club raised high above his head. Rose evaded the blow effortlessly with a swift sidestep, the would be crushing blow striking nothing but thin air. As the small giant of a man stumbled past, unable to put an immediate stop to his momentum, Rose struck him in the back of the neck with the fat side of her blade, a resounding crack the exclamation point. The burley male fell to the ground, limp.

"I'll not warn you a again. Come at me again and next time it'll be your heads."

The remaining three bandits glanced at each other in shock, then back at their fallen ally.

"Did... Did you kill him?" the leader asked with a visibly trembling voice. The fallen bandit seemed to answer this with a painful groan.

Exchanging a final glance with his allies once more, the leader dropped the knife to the ground and fell to his knees. Knowing that even with the number advantage they were far outmatched, after all one wasn't wanted with such a high bounty if they weren't equally as dangerous, the leader hoped to gain some semblance of mercy.

"We're sorry" he murmured, his head bowed low in defeat.

"It's just… we really be needin' coin" he protested, tears now streaming down his ashen face. "We didn't really kill dem soldiers behind us, nor do we really like muggin' folks, but we desperately need money. For our families ya see, you have a family right you be understandin'? We're poor, so we can't get money in our town. Unless ye be already rich, own a store or join the army, you're as good as cooked. We're not fit to join the army and we don't own a shop or any royalties so…" he trailed off and broke down to hysterical sobbing. The other two conscious members patted his shoulder consolingly.

_How pathetic…_

"None of that is my problem" Rose responded.

"You don't understand! You be strong an' powerful, you can do things. But we can't, we need help, an all Kazas care about now is the war, while they're less fortunate folk starve without a home!"

"If you're pleading charity, it's to the wrong person" Rose said harshly. "The weak cannot hope to change anything and at the same time cannot expect to rely on the strong. If you want to change, then get strong and change it yourself. The only charity I can offer is a swift death so such worries no longer matter."

With that the leader straightened up, his eyes fearful.

"Alright, we'll go. Just… please don't be killin' us…"

"Just go" Rose said, walking back towards her horse. Although she turned her back physically, she didn't turn the back of her mind, which kept diligent watch as the bandits scuffled to pick up their fallen companion. By the time she reached Dasher, the quartet was well and truly out of sight.

_Citizens turned bandits… _As Dasher trotted onwards, Rose thought about how bad Kazas must really be for the people not caught up in the conflict. _It's not like it's anything new _she rationalized. _Misfortune is ever prevalent, whether there is a war or not. The weak will always be weak, and the strong will, if they're lucky, stay strong long enough to ensure they continue a decent existence in the future. _

After another couple of hours of riding, Rose dismounted, ate, drank, and fell asleep underneath the blazing stars. She studied them closely before falling into an uneasy slumber, as if it would be her last chance to do so. In all probability it likely was.


	11. Chapter 11: The Danger of the Unknown

**Chapter 11: The Danger of the Unknown**

Zack, who had gained no further progress on escaping the barred cell that had become his refuge, waited with increasingly declining patience. He had not gained an audience with the cloaked presence (who Zack assumed was the puppeteer of this nice charade) since their initial meeting several days past, and the only momentary interruption that broke the ceaseless monotony was the routine drop off of food and water, which happened as many as one to four times a day or sometimes none at all if his sense of time was anywhere near correct, devoid of any light or connection to the outside world he had no way of knowing for sure, which only served to deepen his growing claustrophobia. His number of meals weren't the only thing erratic, what his meals contained, which could be as little as a bowl of soup or dried oats or as royal as a slab of perfectly cooked meat topped with mouth watering sauces and gravy along with a generous side dish of vegetables or fruits. It was mind games this shrouded individual was playing Zack came to realize. Some days he felt like he would nearly starve, others he was so filled the meals verged on excessive. The distribution of water was the same, never constant.

The people, if you can call them that, you'd be only half true if you did, that served subsequent trays of food and water after his meeting with the veiled figure were the very hybrids he had battled on the coast of Rouge. Never the same soldier twice neither, different men and women of different statures and builds came and went without as much as a word or pause, but they all shared a distinct quality: They were vacant, as if not really there. Their movements were so mechanical that Zack wouldn't have been surprised to see some kind of conduit that transferred signals with a person controlling it with some kind of remote mechanism. This wasn't the case of course; he knew that from his intimate meeting with them on the battlefield, but the way they moved was so eerily empty of anything remotely human that it made Zack uneasy just watching them. This too, Zack assumed was all part of the mind games.

Zack had attempted on numerous occasions to bait them into some kind of physical confrontation in hopes they would either enter his cell to punish him, giving him an opportunity to escape, or that in their anger they would blast a hole in his jail with their innate affinity to the arcane. The latter idea was a dangerous one of course, one that was more apt to get him killed than provide him an escape, but he had to try all the same. Yet as he taunted his cross-breed counterparts with jeers of all the others just like them he had killed during battle, they didn't as much as glance at him. They came, placed down the food and left within the span of twenty seconds. Nothing he could do or say would garner their attention beyond that.

So left once more with no soul but his own, Zack sat against the steel bench and retreated into his own mind, a habit he'd been doing all too much with his latest downtime. His thoughts drifted to Rose, to Wen and his crusade to name the most prominent, but on this particular occasion he felt himself wandering to his distance childhood, memories which while hidden deep were never forgotten.

* * *

_Home. The warm embrace of the familiar that would never fail to placate the youthful uncertainties and reservations that always plagued the vivid, if not over imaginative thoughts of a boy who is still young enough that adolescence is still a step not to be undertaken till the somewhat distant future, but old enough worry about what frightening phantoms may inhabit the underside of his bed or the corners of his closet. But that would all change soon, he would in a few fleeting years lose the only sanctuary he ever felt was a home, and his remaining anchor in the world, his father along with it. But this was a time when his father was healthy and most of all happy, his mind not yet poisoned by the grief of losing one of two of the most important people in his life. That existence was about to crumble and Zack was there to witness his father's world come crashing down._

_As a young boy Zack was energetic if a little mischievous and so it wasn't unusual for him to be eavesdropping on his father's conversations from time to time. He was curious, as all kids were, and he had a particularly good vantage point from atop the stairs, where the wooden frames would conceal his small figure, but the convenience of it being close to the dining table where his father held most of his discussions meant that while he was hidden from sight, he wasn't hidden from earshot. He had been caught on occasions during the act of course, usually from making too much noise, but Zack was sharp and he quickly learned from his mistakes. On one such morning his father was speaking to Durnan, his closest friend and often babysitter when the situation called while little Zack perched atop his listening spot in an attempt to glean the conversation. When his father had come back from his morning meeting with the then King of Basil's chancellor, he wore an expression Zack had never seen his father wear before. Although young, he had seen his father hurt before, but this was different. Far different, his red tearful eyes displayed a hurt so deep it scared his younger son. So, as young children's curiosity dictates, Zack wanted to know the gossip._

"_She was among one of the victims of the horrific attack on Neet that took place a few days ago." He was mumbling and breaking out into anguished sobs, making it hard of Zack to understand._

_On the opposite side of the small round, wooden table sat Durnan, his bald head and intelligent eyes one of equal sorrow._

"_Joseph… I don't quite know what to say" Durnan said softly, tears crystallizing in his own eyes. She was like a sister to him, had known her nearly as long as he knew Zack's father Joseph. _

"_I shouldn't have let her go alone"' Joseph hissed with regret. "I… I know it was only to visit her relatives, but I should have gone with her! I should have been there to protect her! Damn it!" Joseph struck the table with his fist hard enough to make it tremble._

"_You had Zack to look after, and there was no way you could have known… or likely made a difference, the only thing that would be different is the fact your son would now be an orphan."_

"_You don't know that!" he responded hotly. "I could have done something, anything…"_

_Durnan, always the one to lend calm advice under the most heated of situations, understood his friend's grief but none the less tried to put it into perspective._

"_No one has faced the Black Monster and lived, especially not a blacksmith such as yourself. What happened was a tragedy indeed my friend, I would do anything to not have you go through this, but you must be strong for your son."_

_Joseph could only sob harder, the thought of never seeing his beautiful wife again lancing his heart harder than anything imaginable. _

"_Have you told him?" the thick shouldered Duran asked tenderly._

"_No. I think he knew something was wrong, but I sent him to his room." At that the bearded father turned towards the top of the stairs. Zack, who kept hidden behind the framework, remained still as a statue. "I don't know how to break it to him. I'm still in shock myself…"_

_Zack's young minded registered one thing: he would not be seeing his mother again. At that realization Zack trudged down the stairs, faced his bawling father and asked the impossible question._

_That marked the beginning of the end for Zack and Joseph's precious perfect little world._

* * *

_The Black Monster… _Zack thought. The very thing that became his father's (and his own in a way) obsession. Now that the monster had vanished with the crumbling of the Moon That Never Sets, Zack still felt he lacked closure to the whole situation. He wished that once, just once, he could stare into the eyes of the sinister demon that destroyed his father and mother.

Zack was torn from his reverie by the sound of padded footsteps moving quickly towards his cell. By how urgent they sounded Zack guessed they weren't genome soldiers.

_Perhaps my masked visitor has come for me once more?_

It appeared not to be the case. A figure hurried towards his cell, a flickering oil lamp shifting from side to side in their haste.

"Good, you're awake" the unexpected guest began. Zack gasped softly when he recognized the dark skin and hazel eyes behind a thin grey robe that clung to her frame neatly.

"You" he murmured in surprise, recollecting their meeting upon the Isle of Rouge, the assassin who had given them heed to the pending attack as well as the returned Rose's Dragoon Spirit.

"Keep your voice down" she hushed furiously. "If I'm caught we'll all be in trouble."

Zack nodded silently, but he had to exert a good measure of self control to contain the barrage of questions that entered his mind. In the end he decided on just one.

"Why are you here?" His initial shock disappeared and gave way to more natural suspicion.

"Only to give you information and a small gift. My position is delicate right now and any outright intervention will not go without serious ramifications. But first the gift." The woman slid her right arm through the gap in the bars, holding her closed fist upwards. Zack glanced at it for a moment before he placed his own open palm under hers. She turned her arm so her hand was facing towards his and opened it, releasing a small metal object that Zack caught immediately.

"It may come in handy. Conceal it well" she caution as Zack studied the small piece of metal that serrated into a thin but deadly apex. A fine shiv that would be easy to hide and yet still lethal enough if used correctly.

"Why have you-" The woman silenced him with a raised hand.

"Let me speak first, my explanation will likely answer many questions you may have. Any others I will answer as best I can provided it's within the small time limit I have to remain here. But first thing is first, if you are wondering why you are still alive, it's for two reasons. One of them is because, as you may have figured out yourself, you are bait."

"Figures" Zack muttered without much thought. "And the second reason?"

She paused. "We're not quite sure. We think there is _something _else Cloke has planned because if bait was all you were to him he'd have already killed you. Rose saw you taken, the trap laid. Yet here you are, alive and somewhat healthy as far as I can tell."

"Where exactly is 'here?'" Zack questioned, breaking her explanation once more.

"The dungeon of Kazas of course" she replied irritably as if he should already know this.

"When he saw me he appeared to go to a certain length to make sure I was unaware of my exact whereabouts…" This time it was Zack who was interrupted.

"You have seen him?" She pushed expectantly.

"Well, yes and no. He paid me a visit not long after I was incarcerated yes, but he was hidden beneath a hood and a body of cloth. I have no idea his identity."

"That would have to be Cloke, but the fact he has given you personal attention means you mean more to him than perhaps any of us thought initially." Her eyes turned probing as they searched his. "Do you have any other information to offer? Are you hiding anything from me?"

Zack shook his head. "No, I'm just as in the dark as you are. All he did was told me to keep healthy and wait; apparently he has something planned, although he didn't say what."

"We'll look into this as best we can. In the meantime just pretend to play along, the longer it takes for him to realize you have help, the better."

"I thought he wasn't supposed to find out at all?"

"He will at some point, he has a knack for that sort of thing if nothing else. But by then we hope to put in our plan of action and it won't matter anyway. But I have more news for you and it's all bad. You've already had skirmishes with the human Wingly hybrids in the past. Well it turns out they are only prototypes of this Cloke's desired endgame. Now he has surpassed that and began engineering a new breed of hybrid, a breed that retains the same susceptibility to utter loyalty and control but with increased intelligence and battle strategy flexibility, not to mention extrapolated power. They make the hybrids you've fought until now children in comparison. This we think is what he wants to build his true army with."

"You've gotta be kidding me" Zack responded, shaking his head.

"I wish I were. We don't know how he is able to produce such monsters, but he is doing so at a rapid rate. Infused with a sense of self awareness and decision making that can rival if not surpass the sharpest human minds, he has in a sense created the perfect soldiers for war."

"But giving them such freedom is dangerous surely; even the most loyal human mind can rebel."

"Cloke is cunning and above all calculating. He would not be mass producing such specimens if he had no way to ensure total control."

"By the gods" Zack mumbled, feeling his body go numb. _How did we get caught up in this? What started as civil war has turned into a war of species…_

"Are you… alright?" the woman inquired. "You look pale."

Zack ignored the question. "There's nothing to say that you're not somehow a part of this, that you're not another form of mind games being played down here." The imprisoned warrior's voice turned distrustful.

"All I can do is ask that you to trust me, as I have no way for sure to prove my sincerity. But have I not truthful in the past? Have I not given you a weapon you'd be without otherwise, twice now" she replied, glancing at the makeshift dagger resting in Zack's hand.

"Perhaps you have, but you are after all an agent of the enemy. But for now I'll believe you, at least until I have reason not to, but I'm wary and not as easy to manipulate as I appear."

"Of course" she said softly with an impish grin.

"But why tell me this? I can't do anything with the information down here, wherever this is."

"We need to keep you alive so you can reunite with Rose. You are both Dragoon Knights, and together you are stronger then alone." She let out a sigh and closed her eyes. "Look, we're not innocent in all this we know. Truth be told even without Cloke's intervention we likely would have still started a civil war, after all our king is an ambitious one. But we are only being used as stepping stones for Cloke's own ascension, once we have served our purpose he will dispose of us as he would any other pawn. But then what do you think he will do? Do you think he will stop at Serdio and Tiberoa? He will extend his reach to the rest of Endiness until everything falls under his hungering grasp. In a sense you might even call him Melbu Frahma's successor." Her expression turned somber. "We must stop him at any cost, not just for us but for everyone who wishes independence."

"And truth be told" Zack began, his voice turning hostile and venomous. "That you in no way deserve any kind of liberation for the monster you've wrought upon the rest of the world. Because of your war mongering King you have let in a beast hell bent on world domination, but make no mistake about it your 'King' is no better than this Cloke. Hell, I'm willing to bet if he were in Cloke's shoes he'd be do the exact same. The only thing that separates Cloke and your King is the fact Cloke apparently knows how to play the game better."

It was momentary, but Zack glimpsed her haughty façade fracture a little, revealing a manifestation of fury and malice. Zack smiled inwardly happy to see, even if brief, his arrogant visitor thrown off her game.

Then the echoes of more footsteps, plated ones crashed the earth beneath. Turning her head towards the commotion the dark woman cursed before fixing Zack a final stare.

"Just stay alive" she whispered before she extinguished her lamp light with a wave of her hand and faded into the surrounding darkness, the lone soldier who dropped off another plate of food and water oblivious to her presence.

Zack accepted the light meal silently, spinning the shard of sharp metal in his hand that drifted behind his body while he deliberated whether to attempt an early jail break. He didn't, he felt that such soldiers, hybrid or not, likely didn't have the keys anyway which was the only means for his escape for the moment, and he would only get once attempt, so he could not waste the chance in reckless haste. As he had been doing for the past few days, he waited, waited for the opportunity to present itself which he was sure now would more than ever.

* * *

Rose had nearly breached the Black Castle in meantime, only a few short miles split the distance. It took a little longer than she had expected and as such the day had already broken, rays of early morning radiance piercing the thick clouds above that somehow appeared a backdrop to add to the castle's already brooding appearance. As she skirted the rural countryside that stuck close to the main path, the vast regions of surprising grasslands and meadows that jagged against an otherwise dying landscape like a diamond amongst a sea of stone, housed many farms, vineyards and ranches that were bursting with early morning activity. Farmers were already tending to their fields as were the winery owners while ranchers nurtured their cattle, and Rose even spied a few kids playing on the main path in the distance that led from the top of Sandora to Kazas, a path of cobblestone that had once been a road for merchants and other businessmen and women before it became a highway of thugs and thieves.

Rose didn't really think she'd be noticed by the country workers so far removed from the central hub, but she was alert just in case all the same. It came to no surprise to her when the few workers she did come into eyeshot didn't even bother to lift their brimmed covered heads from their activities that needed to be done to even give her a glance. It was as if to them she didn't even exist.

The peaceful morning that felt somehow surreal to her jolted a memory from deep inside her, a memory while not forgotten had been deeply repressed beneath the many thick layers of her mind's scar tissue. It was no real surprise, after all the sight before her was eerily reminiscent of a time nearly eleven thousand years ago when the peak of technology declined with the fall of the Winglies and all that remained were houses made of easily gatherable raw materials like clay, stone and wood, no such luxuries as brick or furnished metal in those times (steel in particular had only been used for weapons, armours or large barricades and ramparts, certainly not available for basic residence). The sight of the comparatively poor countryside when measured against the surrounding metropolitan reminded her painfully of old times past. A time when the she had only recently accepted the mantle of the child murderer in hopes to one day thwart the iron will of Soa, the god who created Endiness and all species that now live a part of it, past and present. A time when she had to forsake her humanity to become the devil known and the Black Monster, ironically enough a creature feared throughout history for her bloody butchery, yet it was that bloodshed that enabled Endiness to prosper into the world it had now become. Yes, the memory seemed so recent she could almost taste the smoldering ash as it drifted to the earth like snow, an ever signifying mark of her presence in the world.

The first Moon Child she had learned when the moon was beating a scarlet red was born in a remote farming village not so unlike the one she was currently passing. The first time she had to end the life of an infant by her blood stained hands had almost been impossible. She wept merciful tears as her blade sliced the tender flesh, the child's innocent eyes looking up toward her own. It wasn't ever as easy as taking a single life she would soon learn but also all those who would try to protect it, and there were many. On most occasions complete towns would have to be razed in conflagrations of dark flame, each time losing a piece of her very soul until it came a time she was so numbed to emotions such as guilt and remorse that to her they no longer existed. Losing Zeig and her best friends had been the first step in her crumbling world, but Killing the Moon Child every one hundred and eight years, a child which possessed the soul of the God of Destruction whose sole aim was to reunite with its body within the Moon That Never Sets, was the last. From then on her world was nothing more than shades of black and grey, a gloomy reflection of the dark flames she commanded.

As the memory ended, almost like a curtain being called at the crescendo of a play, Rose focused her mind on things that needed to be done. Indulging on her long forgotten past would do her no good, no matter how much she wished to change it. The God of Destruction had been defeated for good, she was no longer the Black Monster that haunted thoughts of those both dead and alive.

_But that's not really true either. Can a cat change its colours simply because it can no longer blend in with its surroundings? At heart I am still the same_ _monster, always have been, always will be_… Rose cupped the dark Dragoon Spirit briefly that rested in her waist bag. She felt it pulse with palpable energy, as if to affirm her thoughts. _After all, I was and am still chosen to bear the burden of this one Dark Dragoon Spirit…_

Yet the contact had a dual effect, it redoubled her determination stop this madness, to put a stop to this war and save the people she considers her friends. And she still owed a debt to Zack, who took responsibility for her own life in the past and now it was her turn to take responsibility of his. But perhaps most importantly, it was also her responsibility to deal punishment on those foolish enough try and end her life. Payback would be something she would enjoy, her Dragoon Spirit pulsing once more at the prospect of unleashing more destruction.

_If there's one thing I'm good at, it's unleashing hell. _A wicked grin touched her lips as she approached the parameter of Kazas, her goal finally in reach. It was time to put the most difficult yet equally important part of her operation. She would infiltrate the castle, liberate as many comrades as she could, and perhaps even skewer herself an evil king. The fun part was about to begin.

What Rose didn't anticipate was that the enemy had expected her to roll up on their front door, counted on it even. With a force better prepared then Rose could have imagined waiting behind the castle gates for her to try and penetrate, Rose didn't think seriously enough about Wen's earlier words of an ambush, and all she had been doing up until now was following the well placed bread crumbs.


	12. Chapter 12: Inside Enemy Territory

**Chapter 12: Inside Enemy Territory**

Kazas, the heart of Sandora as well as the city that was literally built around the country's prominent edifice that also bares its namesake, the Black Castle. Despite viewing the construction for the better part of a day and a half, what was at first a distant shadow that towered like a dark mountain on the horizon had now become a daunting citadel that leered like a dark predator, ramparts and spires as black as a crow's wing greeted Rose with an uncanny kind of welcoming malevolence. It was the largest castle in Serdio and possibly all Endiness, perhaps only just beaten in sheer size and volume by the broken Crystal Palace in Deningrad that resided within the snowy continent of Mille Seseau to the North West. It certainly dwarfed the Indels Castle of Basil and Twin Castle of Fletz in any event, and they were impressive structures in their own right. Besides its colossal size and menacing appearance the fortress appeared to radiate its own back aura, a kind of evil presence you couldn't see but could most definitely feel. Rose didn't know if it was the fact she was facing the Black Castle on her own or if it had somehow become even more sinister appearing since she last laid eyes on it, but this time it felt a little more ghastly, a little more frightening even.

Rose dismounted from her horse before she approached the front gate that spilled into the small refuge city of Kazas that preceded the castle. Giving the tired mare a final brisk rub by running her hand idly through its mane, Rose removed the saddle and stirrups, stripping the steed bare before giving it quick smack on the rump. Dasher looked at her for a moment, as if unsure what its new master had intended.

"Go" She said. "You're work is done, you have earned your freedom." After another encouraging slap the horse took off, rushing back down the main path they had come from. Rose had initially decided on tying the mare to a nearby tree or post, but dismissed the idea in the end. She didn't think she'd have much use for a horse so exhausted and weak that it could barely carry one person let alone two or more if she escaped with anyone, and even if she didn't and had to make a fast escape on her own, she would do so on foot or, if the situation required, by air. After all, if a quick escape is what she needed, she could call upon her Dragoon Spirit and let her wings take her where a simple steed could not. .

Rose turned her attention back to her objective. She would have to trek through the city outskirts before she could even get near the castle. The risk of being attacked for her bounty would be at its highest within the decaying city where the scourge of poverty and desperation would make her a welcome prospect to escape such circumstances no matter how dangerous she might be, and she guessed her identity would be well be made well known, likely plastered within every tavern wall and central notice boards. Then there were the guards, who after being assaulted once by the armies of Wen's soldiers would be on strict alert. She couldn't imagine them letting anyone in, especially a stranger such as herself, and that was once more on the assumption the city militia wouldn't arrest her on sight. She took a moment to search her mind for a plausible way to at least conceal her face without it being to outwardly obvious she was intending to do so. A travelers cloak would have been perfect for the task, if only she had the foresight to bring one but as it has turned out she did not, and with no other conceivable substitute she would have to brave the hostile city with her features on display. Dangerous perhaps, almost verging on foolhardy one part of her instincts insisted, but what other choice did she have? What would happen would happen, and if she was forced to defend herself from peasants or soldiers alike, she would do so with animalistic ferocity.

The city, if you could really call it that, even from the netted view behind the iron struts of the wrought gate that towered high across the central perimeter Rose could spy what were more skeletal remains of a city rather than a real capital. Station in front of the double hinged gate was three guards, two on the left side one on the right. With no local forestry or shrubbery to hide within, Rose had no choice but to approach the gate openly, the three armoured soldiers watching her expectantly as she marched the last few yards.

_There can't only be three guards watching the entrance surely _Rose wondered, her eyes darting in each direction with a quickness that was almost impossible to follow. A wall of what appeared to be reinforced brick and stone bordered the outskirts of the city, a wall that matched the many meters in height of the main gate, a nice defensive addition that wasn't present the last time Rose had the privilege of visiting.

_More positioned behind the gate as likely than not. _

With the barricade too high to jump or scale, Rose would have to walk through the front gate. She hoped she could avoid a physical confrontation if at all possible (although she had her doubts), but if that wasn't achievable she was prepared to deal death with quick and unrelenting precision. Her right hand drifted close to her blade, the familiar texture of the cold steel a welcome comfort.

Before Rose could move too close, the central guard pointed its keen spear towards her protectively to halt her advance.

"Kazas is under quarantine due to the latest attacks, no one goes in or out!' The gruff voice stated from behind a veiled steel helmet. When Rose did not retreat immediately the watchman's posture straightened, shoving his spear closer to Rose's chest.

"We'll not warn you a second time, leave at once" the same guard insisted hotly.

_Interesting, they haven't seemed to have noticed who I am, at last not yet._

"I have some rather significant information to relay to your King" Rose insisted back, utterly composed despite being held at weapon point.

The watchman appeared impatient. "If you actually have any information that would our King would want, then we'll be the ones to relay it. If you don't however and you're simply wasting my time, then female or no, you have a severe beat down commin' your way."

"I can assure you the information is vital" the dark warrior replied with the same kind of relaxed confidence. It made the watchman think she actually may have something of interest.

"Then state it and state it fast. If it's an audience with the King you're after, then you're delusional and I'll give you a beat down for being that stupid to begin with."

A wry grin crept across the intruder's lips. "Does this face not look familiar? Or has my supposed infamy been merely exaggerated? Perhaps his majesty isn't very good at spreading the word."

This appeared to have surprised the sentry, who at the slight against his King initially appeared on the verge of laying down one of his promised 'beat downs,' but then one of the other two guards, the one to the left behind the sentry she was currently conversing, leaning against the warding wall of brick in what appeared a bored gesture suddenly shrieked "I thought I knew her face!"

The one interrogating Rose turned his head towards his ally. "What are you blabbering about!"

"That's Rose!" he squawked in horror, his voice by contrast high pitched and nervous. Rushing up with spear pointed the same as the watchmen in front of her the second guard circled from her flank. Although as clueless as initial sentry, the third one followed, sensing an impending dispute.

The original watchmen moved his head closer in a gesture Rose could only guess was closer examination. She didn't shy away from the probing gaze she could feel channeling from behind the helmet.

"By the gods, the one with the bounty" he murmured, incredulous. His disbelief soon turned to hostility as the end of the spear moved from Rose's torso to her neck, the width of a fingernail splitting the distance. The other two guards did likewise, on from her left, the other from behind.

"I don't know what you're planning by pulling a stunt like this, but it will damn well be your last" the gruff soldier snarled. "Now lay down your weapons and items, while I'm sure we'll get a nice bonus if we bring you in alive, the bounty for your carcass will be more than enough for me to retire on, so don't try anything stupid."

Rose promptly dropped her sword and unfastened her waist belt, dropping it as well to the earth below.

The main guard calling the shots gestured to the one on her left. "Pick them up."

"But shouldn't we-"

"Just do it!" he hissed, and the second guard scrambled to the ground and threw the waist belt over his shoulder while holding the sword in his non preferred hand. He was still able to grasp the spear with both of them, even with the added cumbersome blade that made holding the spear rather awkward.

"I think we should alert the other guards, she's got a high bounty for a reason" the timid guard pressed after retrieving her Rose's items, but the main watchman groaned impatiently.

"And then have to share the reward with the others? Or worse yet, run the risk of forgoing our reward altogether? Are you fucking kidding me? It's only one unarmed woman, I think we can handle it Rick."

"He's right you know" Rose added calmly. She turned to the main soldier specifically. "Even if your reward money takes a hit, it's better safe than sorry right? It would be unfortunate if you were to somehow wind up dead now wouldn't it?"

Rose had intended to invoke anger by her statement or at least annoyance, such emotions often clouded judgment and created unnecessary mistakes. But her words did neither, in fact all it did incite was his humorous interest.

"A tough one eh? I like that." He ushered her towards the iron gates with a not so light shove. As the marched onwards, all three guard moving with her, spears pointed nice and close to her throat, Rose felt the repulsive breath of the guard she had just indirectly insulted, now chaperoning her from the rear. "You know, I wonder if for an extra reward when I turn you in they would let me have a little… one on one time, a little us time if you would. I happen to notice you are a rather beautiful woman, and while under this helmet I probably have a face that wouldn't be to your liking, I think by the end of it we can both learn to enjoy it."

The thought of being violated by this smug soldier turned her icy blood to fire. Somehow this piece of gutter trash had managed to do what Rose attempted earlier, getting under her skin, although she didn't think it was by any great design of his. His level of intelligence meant he was only doing what most cunning scum did, reveling in the moment. Fixing him hateful glare that promised future repercussion, none of which would be gentle, a glower which would in some way strike at least some measure of anxiousness in even the hardiest of warriors only seemed to fuel his hilarity, much to Rose's further disgust. It took nearly all the self control she had not to try and brain him where he stood.

"Move faster" he commanded with another rough shove that sent her sprawling to her knees. She sprang back to her feet quickly, surveying the three with her dangerous glare. The last guard, the one in front of her who had so far said not a word appeared oblivious to her watch, but the one beside her, the timid one called Rick who wished to call for reinforcements, faltered a little, almost shrinking under her relentless watch. He was the weakest link, the one she would go after first. Not only that but employing such a tactic also by fortune had the added advantage of being able to re-gather her weapon which he currently held before dealing with the remaining two. She would save the one foolish enough to taunt her with allusions of despoilment for last if she could. If she has it her way, he will not die slowly.

The four of them reached the gate, the head guard once more commanding the timid guard who had become his apparent whipping boy to open the gate. Backing towards the gate slowly, eyes still firmly fixed on their prisoner until his back caressed the iron, the guard fumbled with the key a moment before going about the first step of opening the massive gateway. Rose heard a _chink_ sound as the guard attended to what she assumed was the first lock in between the two hinges, and once that task was complete Rick hunkered on his knees and started release additional locks towards the bottom of the hinges. This process took a few minutes, the main sentry tapping his plated boot eagerly on the dusty earth they all stood on, no grass or flora this close to the city.

"Hurry it up would you!"

Rick didn't reply to his commander's incessant pressing, but he did begin to scuffle noticeably quicker. One side of the gate then swung open. With the task done, Rick made his way back towards his comrades, although with less enthusiasm this time around. As a result his vigilance dropped a fraction, and at the worst possible time. With the gate now open, Rose's passage inwards now assured, she was ready to make her move. As Rick ambled towards the trio, his spear still in front of him pointing towards their dark prisoner, the sentry made his final, fatal mistake.

"Took you long enough" the commander grunted unhappily. Evidently having enough of being barked at like a dog, poor Rick picked the worst time to spontaneously grow a spine. His spear dipped downwards as he let out a pent up annoyed sigh.

"Listen, can you not be such a –" the unfortunate soul would not get the privilege to end his sentence. The main watchmen had let his guard drop a little as well, a result of being uncharacteristically spoken back to Rose supposed. In the end it mattered not, the proverbial stars had aligned, and with it Rose took the small window of opportunity. Taking a long step towards Rick, she extended her hand a delivered a strike to the side of his head. Despite being protected by a sheen of metal, the combination of shock with the surprising viciousness of the belt dazed him, sending him sprawling dumbly to his hands knees. As another opportunistic result the guard dropped her sword, which she nimbly scooped up only moments after it struck the dirt. Sword in hand, Rose moved behind the stunned watchmen and impaled him with a piercing stab the severed the part of his spine between his thin shoulder blades, the chain mesh armour doing nothing to hinder the keen edge's penetration. All of this cumulated to Rick's mercifully quick death in a matter of mere seconds.

"Damn it!" the main guard cursed. "Stupid fool, I knew he was too green for watch duty at a hot zone." To Rose's astonishment, she detected a note of regretful grief over his companion's death. Rose didn't think he was capable of such emotions, wonders never ceased it seemed.

The sentry turned to the third one who had still at this point done or said nothing remarkable. "Go get back up damn it, and be quick about it!"

He seemed to hesitate. "But then you'll be left-"

"Just do it!" he roared, and the remaining watchmen scampered off towards the open gates.

Rose wasn't about to have any of it. She could ill afford to have the whole city guard garrison alerted before she even stepped foot into the city. Dark, murky energy began to coalesce within her left, free palm, growing into the size of stone large enough to engulf her hand. The matter seemed to spark within its swirling vortexes of spectral mass like an electrical current, forking across a gleam that flickered all spectrums of colours atop an abyssal blackness. Once sufficiently charged, Rose hurled the ball of condensed energy towards the fleeing guard. As if somehow fixed with some detecting apparatus that allowed the ball of dark energy to follow a designated target, the sphere of combustible power rounded the small bend beyond the gates and slammed into the racing watchmen. With an inhuman sounding wail the guard was engulfed in a pillar of black flame that in a few minutes from now would leave nothing more than a pile of charred ashes.

Upon witnessing another ally being brutally executed, the only remaining gate keeper could only cry in helpless disbelief and fury.

"In case you were wondering, I can channel my magic to follow certain heat signatures, like a heat seeking device if you will" Rose detailed, as if a question had been asked. She enjoyed watching the pathetic excuse for a sentry squirm, his breathing turning rugged, his stance fixed in what Rose could only assume to be fear or great anger. Probably a mixture of both.

"Do you now see how trying to fight me one on one was a poorly calculated mistake? How baiting me with notions of defilement an even larger one" She was moving towards him now, not quite as briskly as she could if she wanted to end the encounter immediately, but she wasn't dawdling either. It was a pleasure to torture her foolish pray, but she could not afford to do it at the expense of too much time. Now that in a few seconds she will have slain three guards, corpses which she could neither hide nor disguise, time would most certainly be of the essence.

The watchmen cursed her with rather spirited venom under the circumstance, but under it she could detect an anguish that was too strong to hide.

"I admire your bravery however; I pegged you for a coward upon first meeting." She had closed the distance now; all that was left was to deal one more final blow. There was still time for him to break down into pleading earnest, if that were his true colours.

"Then perhaps you'll admire this" he said with a choked voice still full of that same fury and suffering. He dropped his spear and removed his helmet, letting that too drop to the ground with a soft thud.

"I'll not fight you; we both know you will win the battle easily. But neither will I give you the satisfaction of struggling nor will I beg or ask for mercy. But know this face, remember it well." His face, the features of veteran, dark eyes, a bushy brow and chin, a scar that ran across his right closed eye, smiled a wicked grin that bordered lunacy. Perhaps it was, if anything was going to crush the mind and soul watching your comrades die knowing you too will share the same fate was certainly apt to be one of them. "This is the face that will haunt you in hell. And believe me, if you plan on storming Kazas, we'll have our appointment sooner than you think."

Rose couldn't help but ponder a moment on the idea of showing this insolent guard the meaning of real pain, to see how quickly his bravado would crumble in the face of true torment. But she quickly pushed the appealing thought away. As she reminded herself, time was now of the essence, she had far more important objectives than teaching this half-wit a lesson in suffering. Her decision made, she ended it quickly and without word. The tip of her sword sliced through the exposed throat, the skin rippling as his neck was replaced with a wound that was somehow similar to the owners malevolent smile moments before the cut. He was not smiling now though, his face turned into an expression of pained shock as blood pouring from the open wound like a river of red. His hands moved to the wound, but there was nothing he could hope to do. His jugular now severed along with his wind pipe, he would not be able to breathe as his body contracted, eventually falling until it would twitch for a few minutes more as his body registered its inevitable fatality.

Rose in the meantime had been sure to maneuver around the splashing blood, as she had done when she slew the first guard, not wanting to stain her garments with it. This of course was not a vanity issue but one of appearance, she didn't think strolling into Kazas with blood stained clothes would help her cause to reduce her attention. Moving towards the unlocked entrance, not sparing the watchmen a second glance as she passed, Rose finally made her into the city of Kazas. To her surprise no more guards waited on the other side of the gate, nor had any noticed the burning cadaver that blazed like a small bonfire. As Rose searched ahead, there was still a small distance between the gate and the actual town, and with a little luck that distance would be enough for the rest of the city to not taken notice of the commotion, at least not yet. If fortune was still on her side and had not yet been used up, it would take the rest of the militia hours to realize a battle ever took place. In the end only time would tell.

As soon as Rose breasted the capital itself, she was met with an almost tangible odor that assaulted her nose like a nasty chemical. She couldn't describe exactly what the smell was, for it was a mixture of many unpleasant tangs that create a single vile stench. It was hard not to gag as it suffocated her nostrils like a horrible perfume. The city laid in front of her was just as bad if not worse, and calling it a city was drawing the bow very long. A slum was more appropriate, and even then it seemed somehow too generous for the state of affairs of the outer capital. The external arc of Kazas had always been relatively poor, as if the Black Castle was not only a stronghold but also some kind of beacon that sapped the life of everything around it to keep it fueled. But it had grown considerably worse, even taking into account the earlier raid. By nature the outer arc was exactly what the name of the district implied, it was a cluster of broke or breaking shacks and huts, mostly consisting of wood or clay, perhaps scant metal or steel if lucky, and due to the geography of the surrounding region which seemed to dip as if the capital was situated within a descending crater, residence and stores like piled up one another with only thin strips of decaying earth acting as separation. Thin narrowing planks of wood working as makeshift bridges or ladder were the only means of traversing the higher levels, while the ground level was clustered with thin narrow-ways that split the polluted streets. All in all it was like a rabbit's warren, a kind of deprived, elevated labyrinth. This encompassed the entire circumference of the castle, the outer district like a giant ring that looped around. It got a little better as you ventures closer to the castle, but only a little. In this region you were either royalty or poor, there was no middle ground between the two. The main Sandorian fortress within the center was the only building free of poverty and desperation.

The citizens of this underprivileged locale mirrored the festering infrastructure, most wore only torn rags, either sitting along the sides of the main street that moved towards the city's core before fanning out like a spider's web of alley ways and crude corridors or scurrying around the local peddlers, begging or attempting to pick pocket whatever they could their hands on. As for the traders, most were unlucky enough to not have their own store so they littered the side of the walkways like a small market place, selling varieties of foods, clothes and other trinkets and odds, none of which Rose would certainly buy, the meat appeared rancid, clothes were stripped and tattered while the promised charms of great fortune and wealth were bargained at a price so outrageous that even if the items did work with their guaranteed purpose, which Rose was sure didn't, the price would still outmatch the gain.

Rose had moved no more than a few paces within Kazas' outer quarter when a child no older than six or seven approached her.

"Hey!" the boy greeted energetically, which appeared somewhat atypical within the confines of this pit of misery. He too bore the worn, faded rags of a shirt ripped and overstretched as well as trousers that were frayed at the edges that fell only to his small knees. His long, unruly blonde hair that looked to have never seen a comb of washing agent, plastered against his ashen face like a cowl. "You're er… Rose, right?" The boy spoke in a hushed tone now.

Rose eyed him with a mixture of curiosity and caution. He may only be a child, but a child could make a make a lot of noise and draw a lot of attention, two things Rose didn't need at this present moment. The inferring thought was a morbid one, yet in the past she had killed children younger than this small lad before, and she had no doubt that if the situation warranted it she would do so again. Still, she hoped she wouldn't have to.

"And if I am?" Rose countered casually, raising an eyebrow.

The boy flashed a grin, displaying even, rotting teeth. "Then perhaps we can be of help." The child bounced on his heels excitedly.

"We?" Rose wondered, not liking where this was going.

"Yuh. My mum n' I are part of a…" the boy paused a moment, as if not sure how to finish. "_resistance" _he finished, having trouble pronouncing the word. This situation had become eerily reminiscent of the last time Rose entered. "Ma will explain, jus' follow me, you need a way inside the castle anyway yuh?"

At the mention of needing a route inside the citadel the boy's eyes flashed with momentary perception, a sharp intelligence, or perhaps cunning would be more accurate that had been hidden under the unfortunate, if not somewhat naive exterior.

_This boy is not as dull as he is trying to accentuate _Rose thought morosely, a dark feeling setting in the pit of her stomach. But before Rose could probe the small child he was moving towards the north western portion of the main road where it branched into a mesh of haphazard passages that spanned upwards as well as forwards.

"Come, I'll show ya!" he hollered, insisting her pursuit with a vigorous wave of his unclean hand. Rose paused a moment, unsure whether to follow. On one hand it could be dangerous to do so, for various reasons and prime among them all a future ambush, but if he was sincere and a kind of internal faction wishing to usurp the cruel leader existed, which wasn't at all out of the realm of possibility, if conflict created one thing it was many vying factions, then a passage inside the castle would aid her infiltration immensely.

Weighing up the options, Rose made a decision. She followed the boy.

The child appeared pleased when Rose motioned towards him, flashing a small foxy grin. "Try'n keep up eh?" he said in a low voice as he darted towards the inner maze, navigating the narrow corridors, the thin bridging planks that connected separated landscapes and uneven rooftops with the experience of one who has done so most of his life. Rose guessed he probably had, even with her own considerably quick agility she had trouble matching the fast but sure footwork of the boy's, who seemed knew every turn and which way within this network of navigational perplexity. His small size made it also easy for him to move past large groups of segregated people, none of which to Rose's relief took any notice to what would look like an adult chasing a child.

Deeper and deeper the boy led her, past stores, houses and infertile strips of land. Rose glanced back every so often, aware that if she lost him she would have no way of finding her way back towards the entrance without many hours of fruitless wondering, so she fixated her attention on the boy's back, following his every step and move. Eventually the bustle of city dwellers began to thin and thin until it became nonexistent, all that surrounded them was a graveyard of old busted constructions that were so old and wrecked that even the poor folk of Kazas didn't make them into any kind of dwelling. Rose noticed this but made nothing of it for a time until they were traversing a long thin archway that seemed to be leading directly to the castle. Rose halted at once, her instinct telling her to follow no further.

"Is there a problem?" The boy asked between shallow huffs of air. Rose ignored the question, taking a closer inspection of her surroundings.

_Something's wrong _she thought as she examined the various decaying houses and buildings (among them even a broke church) that littered either side of her in a line, creating the makeshift passageway of broken materials. Rotting wood and broken clay was what she was really looking at, yet it still struck her odd that no one would try to inhabit such an expanse of residential potential, as broken and worn as it was. It would still beat living on the streets. No, this was something different, something somehow wrong.

_It's as if this area has been cleared… but for what? _

The reason dawned on her like a bell sounding off in her own head, but she was aware that moment too late.

"Boy, run!" Rose urged as the vicinity came to life, soldiers crashing out of what she assumed to be vacant buildings, rushing from both sides of the funneled corridor. The boy however didn't make a move, and when the soldiers poured past him as if he didn't even exist, Rose realized he had been a part of the game all along. She took a risk and paid for betting on the wrong team.

Dozens of soldiers cornered her from both sides and she knew immediately she had no way of escape. She could transform and decimate the platoons of soldiers she supposed, but then what? Her presence was already discovered and known, likely before she even stepped foot inside the city itself, and to waste precious energy now would mean she'd lack it when she would need it most, inside the castle. With a resigned sigh Rose threw her hands up in an act of surrender.

One of the soldiers pushed past the massed and confronted her, his remarkable armour standing out from the rest of the privates, thick gleaming shoulder pads and a chain mesh of armour that made the others look dull by comparison. A squad commander Rose noted by his rigid strut and recognize-me demeanor.

First the commander addressed the boy, pulling out a small raw hide tied sack and dropped it into the child's hands, who accepted it greedily as the contents made a recognizable _chink _as the sack which contents were most definitely gold switch hands. The boy then disappeared out of sight.

_So it was simply the promise of money rather than any real affiliation _Rose thought absently. She could forgive him for that she supposed, after all it was likely the difference between his own and family's existence or not, if he actually had a family.

The commander finally turned to Rose, his unmasked face surveying her intently. "We had word you would try and enter the castle, but to think you'd actually be foolish enough to do so…" the experienced commander shook his head, his long main of dark hair whipping as he did. "I must admit, I'd hope to meet you on the battle field, to defeat you in a duel would bring my family and me unimaginable honour."

"It would only bring you a swift death" Rose chided uninterestedly.

"It's a pity, if I weren't under such strict orders then I'd put such a comment to the test, but alas as long as you are compliant I must bring you back to our dear King. Of course, if you wish to push the boundaries, give me a reason to have to kill you, then by all means…"

"Wouldn't dream of it…. Commander" Rose responded scornfully. The commander studied her a final time before nodding, as if in some kind of agreement.

"Seize her and take her belongings. Make sure she is securely shackled, we cannot place too many precautions with an enemy such as this." Sandorian familiars converged upon her, doing exactly as they're commander ordered. Her sword and waste pouch were confiscated (for the second time now, for joy) and she felt her hands being locked behind her, the firm caress of iron locking them in place.

"Good" the commander said once the ordeal was done. "Now let us return to the castle, we shan't keep our King waiting." And so she was marched, ironically enough towards the objective she had had all along. Granted it wasn't under ideal circumstances but the end result was the same, she would get within the castle walls along with an audience with the King and plus, with a bit of luck she'd be thrown in the main dungeon where if she was fortunate enough Zack or any other of her old comrades may be incarcerated as well.

* * *

King Rommel Hytas sat upon his domineering throne expectantly, one leg raised atop knee in a gesture that appeared offhanded and utterly relaxed, yet the intensity of his gaze as his cloudy, intelligent eyes fell upon her told her he was far from relaxed.

Having been roughly ushered through the main chamber of the castle, the dark marble floor spotless as well as the other winding hallways that branched out across both sides of the base floor and the many floors above it that towered above the massive foyer known of the Great Hall, like a kind of giant spiraling staircase that you couldn't quite see the end of. Rose didn't get time to examine much more before she was thrown not so gently into one of the many oil powered elevators, a magical specialty of the Black Castle that powered most of the castle's amenities as opposed to electricity. Once the lift opened she was escorted towards the King's chambers, now forced to kneel in front of the man who was now gazing at her attentively.

A period of silence filled the room as Rose and Hytas locked eyes. In the end the king was the first to break it.

"I'd say this meeting was long overdue, wouldn't you?"

"Long overdue indeed" Rose agreed coldly. Most of the soldiers that captured her had left, leaving only a few elites and commanders. Despite being without a weapon or her Dragoon Spirit, she could be as deadly with her hands and if given the chance she thought she could still find an opportunity to end the life of a second Sandorian King.

Hytas smiled politely but his eyes displayed a keen awareness as if he knew what she had been pondering. Rose felt the prickle of something sharp and pointed pierce the side of her neck as a sensation of overburdened heaviness gripped her tiring limbs. Rose turned just quick enough to see a syringe disappear inside one of the dark elite's leather sleeve.

"Do not mind that my dear, it is merely an added precaution to make sure you remain well behaved. Wouldn't want you doing anything foolish now would we? But fear not, while your body turn immobile this particular dose of serum shouldn't affect your mental capacity, so let us parley without the worry of any physical misconduct."

"Paralysis huh? Not bad, it appears so far you do live up to your foxy reputation."

Hytas grinned as if it were a compliment, his long, gray strands of his moustache quivering like long brittle twigs on a dry and dying tree caught in a wind current. "Keep in mind my welcome guest it was you who stuck your nose in my business first, I had no intention of creating any conflict with you. Alas you have aligned yourself with the wrong side in this struggle, and you have forced me to deal with you personally now."

Rose felt muscles sag, the mere act of keeping upright on her kneeling legs a battle she was slowly losing. Her balance thrown askew she was wavering like a coiled viper waiting to strike, the top half of her body unable to remain straight. The King appeared to find this amusing, much to her growing anger.

"I haven't much to say to you, for you are but a puppet. I do however wish to speak to the puppeteer pulling your obvious strings." Her speech came out slurred, as if she spent a long night at a tavern drinking too much ale, but she thought her comment jabbed him none the less. His smile turned into a scowl, a momentary spark of annoyance crossing his eyes.

"In due time my guest, in due time. In the mean time I think you have earned yourself a trip to the dungeon. Not a nice place, or so I hear from that noisy friend of yours."

_Noisy friend… could he mean Zack! _

With a dismissive wave from their King, the remaining soldiers fell upon her defenseless frame once more, hands gripping and pulling her limp body upright.

"Make sure she is under constant surveillance, if I hear any guard even for a single moment turning their attention away I will hanging from the gallows lifeless before they can see another day. Make sure that message is conveyed crystal clear."

The half a dozen members of Hytas' elite taskforce affirmed this order with a light bow of their heads, one arm crossing over the opposite shoulder. They all preformed this in a well acted line of unison while simultaneously keeping Rose upright.

And so the fleeting image of Hytas looking despondently towards the immense ceiling as Rose was literally dragged out of the chamber was all she could glean as the doors fell shut and her journey began towards the descending dungeon that awaited her.

* * *

"You can come out now" Hytas said softly, one hand fiddling with his long strands of silken silver facial hair distractedly. A shadow appeared from behind the enormous back of his crusted throne, dark eyes almost glistening above a masking cloth that obscured the bottom half of her face.

"Do you think she detected my presence?" the dark woman wondered without any real interest.

"I don't think so but it's hard to say. Either way it doesn't matter, I've let on about her comrade in the dungeon, so for now all I can do is post a few guards, look serious and hope she is as crafty as her reputation dictates, which, upon meeting her personally, I think is very much the case."

"I still stress caution Your Majesty, the way she looked at you… she really means to kill you before she leaves I think. Probably would have tried during the conference if she wasn't subdued."

Hytas waved the notion off with a laugh. "Of course Amika, of course." His tone took on a much more relaxed nature, as if he were not a King speaking to a soldier but two close friends who have known each other all their lives. In Amika's case that assumption wasn't too far off the truth. "She would kill us all if given a chance, as is her dark nature. Never have I gazed into the eyes of someone so soulless, so devoid of any benign qualities, displaying such a blatant exhibit of malice and fury. Even with the status of being a monster that butchered children for eleven thousands years, I didn't expect to meet a person that exuberates murderous intent like a wave you could actually feel." Another short laugh. "I'm a little ashamed, I've done many horrible things that will earn me a special place in hell, and I regret none of them. But compared to her… What wrongs I have wrought are but a drop in the ocean of infinite darkness and cruelty."

"All the more reason to be wary Highness, if I may caution once more."

"We haven't much choice in any event, with Cloke breathing down my neck and sure to dispose of me first chance he gets, we have to play with a bit of fire. But, once there is a winner, be it Rose or Cloke, as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow we will be there waiting in the shadows, ready to exterminate the last barrier when they are at they're weakest." Hytas grinned his signature foxy smile. "Worry not Amika, after all I didn't get to where I am by not knowing how to take calculated risks. Just make sure you follow Rose when you can and keep me updated. If she escapes it won't be long till Cloke finds out and then time will be against us, so be ready."

"Yes my King" the dark woman agreed and replicated another one of those one-arm crossed bows that the elites had done a few minutes ago.

* * *

Rose was thrown into a iron holding cell that was virtually identical to the one Zack was housed in, a dark, cavernous hollow that had small cells lined on either side. Rose found it hard just to keep her lungs functioning, the act of inhaling and exhaling something she never thought could be so hard to accomplish. The iron door snapped shut with a resounding crash of steel on steel, and the footsteps faded, leaving only two guards (at least as far as she could see, she was sure there would be more in the near vicinity) to watch over her. Not that she could do much in the state she was in any way with the paralysis poison taking full effect, rendering her a lifeless vegetable. But focusing on the basics, Rose slowed her breathing to a deep, pausing inhalation before expelling it softly, getting into a rhythmic pattern. Now that she had managed to breathe a little easier, her mind pondered about what she could do once the effects wore off. After the better portion of a full revolution of the clock, her thoughts became hazy and disjointed, eventually evaporating as the darkness of slumber consumed her.

* * *

Rose sprung awake an immeasurable amount of time later, her climb to conscious startling, leaving her momentarily off balance. She wasn't aware she had even drifted to sleep, and once she had submerged into an unconscious state so deep she thought she hadn't experienced such an immersive rest since the end of the Dragon Campaign she had actually _dreamed. _Not beleaguered by nightmares and memories of guilt and regret but actually dreamed, a peaceful one as well as she recalled the scattering remnants.

Testing her muscles she tried to sit upright and was met with a good measure of success. Her limbs appeared to still be suffering some lingering effects, they weren't as responsive as she was accustomed to, but at least she could move again thank the heavens above.

Taking a bit of time to try and breathe full life into her drained appendages Rose eventually managed to wake her extremities by much the same way she had waken, vigorous shaking and rapid moving startled her sleeping body back to life, and while she was sure she still wasn't as reactive as she was at her peak, she was responsive enough.

"Good timing" one of the helmed guardsmen said from the outside the cell. "Cloke will be here to interrogate you shortly.

_Already? Was he that fast or have I been sleeping that long? _

An impossible question to answer at this point, so instead she shifted her thoughts to the not so distant future. _This may be a good chance to at least reel whoever this Cloke person is if I don't get the chance to kill him or her outright. _

The prospect of killing Cloke in the position she was appeared doubtful, especially if he was as calculated as he has so far shown. Yet she would be waiting for such an opportunity if such one would present itself all the same, after all even the most calculated of people can make a small but fatal slip.

Commotion resounded towards the concealed entranceway to her left. It sounded like the clamor of battle, the crashing of sword and shield to her well trained ears. And it was growing more urgent, drawing closer to her position. The two guards glanced at her then towards the direction of the sound, as if debating whether or not to leave there post. Something in the end must have prompted them to leave, the duo rushing towards the disturbance screaming _"Hey! What in the hell are you doing!" _

Drawing as close to the bars as possible, Rose tried to spy any visuals in the piercing din that lay beyond the light of the few burning braziers. She could detect none as the echoes ceased, everything turning silent once more. All Rose could do was wait, wait for the unknown presence to unveil itself if it so chose.

It did choose to show itself as it turned out. Rose was shocked to see an armoured infantrymen holding a spear bloodied with the red of his fellow cohorts, the tall frame covered head to toe with steel armour common to the basic private. What took her attention next was what lay in the other hand, her rapier shimmering softly as it reflected the pyres of the torches, along with a familiar dark glowing orb.

Without a word the soldier dropped her weapon and Dragoon Spirit through the bars where they fell at her feet. Rose looked at her gear then back at the soldier, who was hidden behind a steel helm.

"Who are you?" Rose asked suspiciously. There was a period of small silence, and when Rose thought she was have to probe again to get a response the soldier burst into a roar of quick laughter. Rose knew who it was immediately.

"Zack?" She inquired, although she already knew this to be true. When he removed the Sandorian helmet, he was grinning, despite it all he was grinning, likely taking particular notice in her expression of utter surprise.

"Miss me?" he said with another laugh while Rose could only look on dumbfounded.

_How on earth…?" _


	13. Chapter 13: Jailbreak

**Chapter 13: Jailbreak**

Patience, a well-regarded virtue many claimed to be in possession of, but very few actually were. It was one thing to be patient while you waited a few days or weeks, perhaps even years depending on the ultimate goal whether it be something as simple as waiting for the weekly paper or something more long term like a future job position wading through the rigmarole of many long and arduous, not to mention time consuming stages of becoming a knight and earning your stripes (of that particular example Zack had been through himself, although he stumbled at the final checkpoint), but Zack realized as he spent what had to be more than a week in a barred cell that none of that was true patience. He considered himself a patient man of course, most people did, but waiting for something without the luxury of distracting oneself with other activities, whether mundane or otherwise couldn't compare to being housed in a cell that never changed in shape or size no matter how many angles you tried to look at it, waiting constantly, waiting for that once chance to turn it all around yet knowing in the back of your mind that chance may never actually present itself. As the days wore on, Zack found his hope begin to flag, his patience all but dissolved, and he thought with a detached kind of certainty that if he didn't find a way out of his prison soon, he would literally go mad. Solitary confinement as Zack was now experiencing was one of the worst and trying exercises he had sat through that didn't involve any physical interaction. Even seeing Amika or even Cloke at this point would be a welcome change to the boredom that ebbed away his sanity.

Of those two he saw none of, as he didn't think he would, but what he did see was a guard, a _human_ guard and not one of those robotic like abominations. The unknown warden noticed Zack jumped to his feet, then waved him down with an inattentive wave of his chain mailed hand not holding double-edged sword.

"Don't get too excited, I'm not here for you" he spoke brusquely, not even turning his helmeted face to acknowledge Zack in the slightest. Although Zack couldn't be sure he thought by the direction of his bronze headgear, only small streaks running parallel down the front of his otherwise covered helm, that he was watching towards the entry way, as if to expect another prisoner. Zack took a whole new interest in the unfolding situation.

"Hey, is there another prisoner?" Zack asked, not really expecting an answer. He would have been disappointed if he was, for the warden didn't move a muscle, his question falling on deaf ears.

"Oi!" Zack hollered, trying once more to get his attention. "It's rude to ignore people you know."

The guard, who was just past the iron bars that had become Zack's imprisonment, twitched in an obvious display of open irritation.

_Now we're getting somewhere_ Zack thought mischievously, enjoying the prospect of breaking the monotony with a little trouble stirring.

"Hey man it's not like I got anywhere to go, so I'm not simply going to disappear because you're being as ass. Talk to me man, what's going on?"

Another exasperated twitch of the shoulders. But the warden was holding his ground well.

"You get thrown down here for duty cuz you messed up or somethin?' Cuz this place would sure be a doghouse if I ever saw one."

Finally the warden did turn, stalking towards the bars of Zack's cell. "Listen you insignificant worm, keep that babbling up and I'll see to it you don't get food or water for the next three days you hear me? Now keep that trap shut." His threat was a low scowl, but Zack thought he meant every word of it all the same. Not that it worried him, he didn't plan to be here for any longer than one day let alone three, but he had hoped to draw the guardsmen into some kind of physical confrontation, piss him off enough so that he'd enter the cell to deal with him personally. On second consideration however Zack didn't think the wardens would have access to the keys to his cell. A kind of high officer who he would be hard pressed to gain a visit from would have them if he was lucky, Hytas or one of his lieutenants would have them if he wasn't. The King wasn't going to risk giving the only means to Zack's escape to a mere grunt in any event, that much he was sure of. But another idea entered his mind, a much more elaborate plan, but one that would be just as effective if he could play his cards correctly.

"Hey, you may want to say that again, I don't think I could understand you through that thick, brutish grunting of yours, I've spoken to Gigantos that are easier to understand than you pal."

The sentry, who had made it half way back to his guarding spot, swung around and marched towards him a second time.

"Knock it off!" a voice resounded from the end of the hall. The soldier stopped mid step, turning towards the sound of the command. His posture straightened at once the moment he identified who the voice had came from.

"Boss" he muttered feebly. The light revealed a leading warden followed by an entourage of two others a few steps behind, although by the look of this unmasked jailer he seemed to be someone of import. He wore a crested breast plate with a kind of lion sigil painted across it, a short sword on one hip, a wooden blackjack in the other. His face however as Zack studied was somehow soft, deceptively pleasant and not at all rugged like the other soldiers, hybrid or otherwise he had come into contact with. Piercing brown eyes under a mop of neat dark hair surveyed him silently.

"You are dismissed" he spoke softly to the warden.

"But, I'm to –"

The unmasked jailor turned to him, eyes not angry or reproachful as one might expect, but somehow cold all the same. It was a glare that rivaled Rose's in pure apathy. "I know, you have orders to stand guard in lieu of the expected prisoner, but I have that position covered and you are now relieved."

The warden nodded and quickly scampered away, leaving only what was now without a doubt the head jailor and his two personal watchers, who unlike the usual grunt wore lighter, leathery looking armour and pads in place of chain mail or plate. One held a large halberd, the other a spiked ball and chain flail.

The head warden turned his attention back to Zack. "It looks like we'll be keeping each other company for a while." His voice was soft and boyish, but instead of making him appear smaller or weaker it made him seem infinitely more dangerous.

_At least he's no Fruegel, though I gotta be careful of this one none the less._

"And who do I owe the pleasure?" Zack asked mildly.

"My name matters not." The head jailor turned to one of his lieutenants and gestured towards Zack's cell with a flick of his unblemished head. The lesser warden stepped forward and began opening the gate.

Zack watched and spotted the other warden not opening the jail door walk forward as well, a pair of iron shackles dangling from one of his covered hands.

"A change of scenery eh?" Zack said placidly.

"Indeed" The head prison officer stated without any real interest. "Although I doubt you'll like it. Then again none of my specimens do, they just can't seem to appreciate real art. You however I hope will be the exception; I have high expectations of you. Please don't disappoint me."

"Art…?" Zack wondered as the two wardens moved into his cell to apprehend him.

"Well it's a different kind of art, but yes it's my art all the same. I'll be sure to introduce you to my hall of fame if you will, and if you can endure long enough you too may be an addition."

_Maybe he's a lot worse than Fruegel after all… _Zack in the meantime had moved a hand behind the elastic holding up his tattered trousers, the shard of sharp metal resting on the small of his back half in and out of the girdle. He fastened a hand around it and prepared to make his move, hoping his idle chatter would distract them a little.

The warden with the spear, the one who opened the cell door come forward first. Even though they wore lighter garments they still wore a metal helm that fastened around their otherwise vulnerable skulls. They weren't as large or clunky as the standard issue however, the face portion of the helmet largely open for a wider field of vision.

"You may wanna look up however" Zack suggest as the guard approached. For a moment he didn't, and Zack worried for a fretful moment he wasn't going to, giving him the opportunity to strike at what would be the thin opening between his covered chest and chin. After a moment's consideration the warden did, glancing up a fraction, but a fraction was all Zack would need. Arcing the clasped shiv towards the warden's neck, Zack managed severed a nice chunk of flesh within the middle of the guard's exposed throat. Zack lodged the sharp dagger within the staggering warden where it would remain, no longer a viable weapon. But as one doors shuts, another opens as Zack believed, and so when the unlucky jailor brought both his hands up to his neck to try and pry the in lodged piece of metal, he dropped the pole arm, the six foot piece of long steel fixed with what appeared to be a cleaver like axe head set upon its apex crashing on the cold hard floor below emphatically. Zack bent low and retrieved the weapon and now armed with something more familiar he felt he had a real chance at making a serious jailbreak.

The head warden watched with cold eyes as his fellow officer bled out on the ground, his trembling, almost failing hands unable to dislodge blade that protruded from his esophagus like a grotesque addition to a torture victim, the crimson beginning to spill from all orifices. Zack watched in silent horror the result of his accomplishment.

"Impressive" the main warden complimented without much concern. The second soldier approached Zack with his ball and chain swinging threateningly. He lunged, but Zack was able to evade, swinging his large weapon towards the soldier's chest. The warden, not encumbered by heavy armour moved away from the carving swing with equal effortlessness.

_Shit its heavy! _Zack cursed as he felt the momentum of his weapon turn him further then he expected. The face of the pole arm crashed on the ground, Zack without the strength to halt its advance and for all he felt he may as well be attempting to halt the falling mast of a ship. His side exposed, the remaining underling rushed in, flail swinging wildly. Zack moved away but not without great difficulty, the unexpected weight of the halberd a burden just to carry. As a result of his inexperience with such a heavy lance Zack found it hard to gain balance, the spiked ball swinging towards him time after time until it back him into the corner of his confine.

In an act of desperation Zack lashed his giant spear as the wrecking ball flew towards him. Steel met with steel, but the iron chain the ball was attached didn't prove to be as strong, the connection between the studded orb and the base breaking under the force of the collision. Knocking away the ball as if he were batting away a coconut, the head of the flail falling to the floor no longer anchored by the base. Looking at the ball and then at the advancing Zack, the soldier could only look surprised as the spike jutting above the axe head pierced his chest. The warden collapsed immediately.

"An entertaining show to be sure" said the main warden as his last comrade fell. Zack remained a safe distance within the coroner of his cell watched with wary caution.

"You could have jumped in any time" Zack said between deep breaths. Gods, to be this fatigued already? How did these soldiers wield such a colossal weapon without tiring within the first three minutes?

"If I wanted to spare the lives of my fellow officer's then truth be told I could have stopped you before you had a chance to put that crafty shiv to use. Alas, if he was foolish enough to be caught so easily, he deserved his fate."

He took a step inside the jail cell, and to Zack the space appeared to instantaneously shrink. Zack held the spear out in front of him as if to try and ward him off.

"But don't think I'm one of them, I could analysis how hard it was for you to wield such a large pole axe. You will not get the chance to even think about swinging it before I club you and lights out."

Zack sensed nothing bravado about his claim, all he felt was assured confidence.

_He's probably right, in a small area like this it was a miracle I killed the other two as it was…_

"Sir, sir, is everything alright!" It was the guard from earlier Zack assumed, the one who had been posted watched initially before being unceremoniously relieved. It was a small, ever so small distraction, but the head jailer glanced back a moment towards the sound and Zack made his move. Swinging the pole arm would still be fruitless, distracted momentarily or not if this guy was even as half as good as he thought he was then he'd still have ample time to avoid the strike, so instead he struck with the blunt, butt end of the weapon. Not only was it basically weightless, making for a much faster trust, but the fact the butt was much shorter than the crown end meant the strike was faster still, and much easier to control. It also caught the mop-topped head honcho off guard as well it seemed, the blunt iron crashing into the side of his face with a sickening crack as the bones within his cheek snapped along with his teeth and the surrounding skin split like scorched earth. He groaned painfully as he hit the floor, blood tricking from his mashed cheek and mouth, but he laid still, completely unmoving save for the faint rise and fall of his chest.

The sentry soldier shirked a shrill cry of horror as he watched his boss hit the ground, likely falling unconscious before he actually hit it. But Zack was on a roll and before the guard could do anything else, Zack struck him too, the handle crashing into the side of his head. Unlike his boss however the soldier had the fortunate protection of a thick metal helmet that now had a nice indentation across the side.

But that wouldn't last long. Looming over the groaning soldier who to fell on the cold floor beneath as a resulting of the stunning blow, Zack unstrapped the helmet and threw it away.

Zack could hear the soldier (young soldier by the looks) plead incoherently. An internal battle broke within Zack's mind, on one hand he could, and probably should deliver the kill shot, but killing someone when they're helpless was a great deal harder than doing it within the throes of battle. And if he killed this one he would have to kill the head jailor too (although killing that guy he didn't think would be such a bad idea, god knows as head jailor and torturer he probably deserved it). The only other option was to knock them out, but what if they woke up and alerted others before he could get himself and this other prisoner out? What if he didn't end up knocking them out at all, it could invite future problems.

"_This is conflict Zack; this is what it's all about. It's harsh, cruel, and most of all its encompassing, consuming the lives of fighters and bystanders alike." _The voice of Rose should be an assuring one, one that could set him on the right choice. Only on this occasion it did the opposite, it helped him make a decision, but it's one Rose would likely look on in scorn.

Standing above a prone guard still babbling for mercy, Zack rolled him on his stomach with a pushed of his booted foot and struck him on the back of the head. The somehow hollow thump bounced off the thin corridors like a voice that was eerily human.

_Sorry Rose, I just can't do what you do. _Zack gave the unconscious soldier a few light kicks to make sure he was well and truly out, and when he got no response he was satisfied. Stealing a quick glance towards the darkened entrance, Zack could not hear nor detected any movement.

_Hopefully no one else heard the scuffle. _It was now time to put the second part of his plan into action. Stripping the private of his body armor, a process which turned out to be rather trying with all the clippings and buckles that accompanied the various pieces of equipment, making it feel to Zack at least as if he was trying to undress some extravagant lady dress. The boots and the helm slid off easily enough, but the grievers, leggings, cuffs, and gauntlets along with the breast plate (the chain mail breast plate in particular was difficult to unfasten) took a great deal of fiddling to pry free of its owner. Once the task eventually reached completion Zack underwent the transformation, attaching the Sandorian outfit over himself. It didn't take quite as long as the stripping process since he had gained some vague familiarity of how the pieces were fixed, but it still took more time then Zack would have liked.

The final piece, and perhaps most important was the horse head helmet, but the notch where the shaft of his spear had struck it was noticeable. It could raise questions and even suspicion Zack supposed, but if it came to that he thought he could talk his way out of it, after all the imprint wasn't overt from any distance past close proximity and there were many reasons a soldier might have suffered an accidental knock to the head. Zack drew the helmet over his head.

_Damn, how do they manage to see out of this thing? _Zack took a time to adjust to his restriction field of vision before glancing at the four bodies that lay around his cell.

_It'll do no good to leave them in plain view. I'll have to hide them best I can. _The soldier he took the uniform from had dark hair like himself, and while it wasn't nearly as long he thought his body shape was similar as well. If he placed him on the bed and turned him so his back faced the bars he thought he might actually pass for a look alike, at least unless they studied it closely. Dragging the scantly clothed guard, he managed to lift him onto the barely risen bed under a deteriorating mattress. Once he moved him into a position that at least from a distance looked to be a posture of sleep, Zack went about dealing with the remaining three. Two he stowed away behind the busted toilet and the final one, the head officer, Zack pushed under the bed. The small but noticeable streak of blood followed, but there was nothing more Zack could do. If they were attentive enough to look peer in then they would likely find something amiss anyway, blood trail or not, and it still achieved what Zack had set out in the first place: removed them from plain sight.

With nothing else more to do, Zack picked up his spear and marched towards the exit.

* * *

Zack opened the cell door with the jail keys he managed to procure during his brief tour of the castle as a soldier. Once opened he tossed Rose's sword and Dragoon Spirit on the floor nearby.

"Managed to gather our equipment from a storage room I found en route to a training drill one of the sergeants pulled me into while I was wearing this uniform. Quite the coincidence really."

Rose collected her two items hungrily; glad to be reacquainted with both. "I'm guessing you didn't find my waist satchel?" Rose asked as she reattached her sword and scabbard.

"No sorry."

"Its fine" Rose responded, shoving the dark orb inside one of her legging pockets.

"Ready to move? I've managed to cause quite a stir, so I can't imagine it'd be long until the rest of the garrison realizes there's a jailbreak in process.

Rose nodded in agreement. "Let's move."

Rose quickly took point as Zack shed the rest of the burdensome mail. Even if he did wear the outfit of a Sandorian soldier, to be seen escorting Rose out of her confines even disguised as the enemy would raise instant alarm so he couldn't find a reason to continue to lug it with him.

"What happened to your own armor?" Rose asked softly as they breached the entrance.

"Dunno, couldn't find it in the confiscated storage pile."

"Well remember you have nothing protecting you now, so don't do anything reckless."

Three wardens lay on the ground in front of the doorway. Two remained still but one stirred faintly, as if murmuring within a dream. Rose walked over to the fallen enemy, drew her sword and rammed it through his chest. The guard bucket a final time, gaping before his body fell rigid once more, forever silent.

Zack turned his face away in disgust.

"I really don't think that was necessary was it? I mean the guy was incapacitated for god's sake" Zack protested as Rose walked back towards him.

"What if he wakes up and raises an alarm? What if he's not really knocked out and attacks us as we turn our backs to him? It's better to minimize risk to reduce the chance of future complications."

The stricken warrior looked ready to dispute the topic further, but Rose waved it away with an impatient hand.

"We can discuss semantics later, but for now the more time was waste, the higher the chance we get snared. Let us move on quickly." Rose pushed forward, exiting the dungeon before Zack could get another word in.

The duo ascended the spiraling stairs in silence, Rose leading, Zack following. Once they reached the top of the staircase they reached a small elevator.

"They usually have their own powders to ignite the oil lifts, or so I think" Zack commented as Rose examined the unlit oil lamp that hung to the left of the open, marble automated pulley. Rose waved a hand over the lamp and it crackled to life, the fire initially black but turning to a violet purple as the oil began to consume it.

"Get it quickly" Rose urged as they stepped into the small crane. Slowly it ascended towards the Great Hall in the foyer.

The hall was quiet. Too quiet. Not a soul could be seen or heard, it was as if the central part of the castle had somehow deserted.

Rose stiffened, sensing another impending ambush. "Be ready" she husked in a low growl. Rose began to move towards the northern wing of the hall, where another lift would take them towards the King's quarters.

Zack grasped her hand. Rose flinched at the contact, having to exert control over her automated defenses.

"Where are you going? The exit is behind us."

"The exit is not where I'm going yet" Rose said, shrugging off the grip. "I'm paying a final visit to the King; I have a few questions I wish to ask before I end his miserable existence."

"Are you mad! Have you lost all sense? You'll never make it near him alive, he has a whole a army at his beckon call, do you really think you can just waltz in there and do what you want to him? Did you lose your wits during the absence of our last meeting?"

"Then leave and I will do this alone" Rose shot defensively.

The elevator leading towards the upper floors to the north churned to life. Both Zack and Rose stopped their bickering and eyed the shifting lift uneasily.

"If you wish to leave I advise you do so now" the dark warrior warned as she drew her sword.

"Tch, like I'm going to leave you alone in the heart of enemy territory. We'll deal with whatever threat looms in front of us and then we're getting the hell out of here, you understand?"

The lift came to a stop. The steel mesh double doors slid open and what stepped out was a figure hidden behind a drape so large and long it fell down to his boots. His identity was but a shadow behind a hood.

"And here the two of you are, right on time" the shape spoke as his walked casually towards them from the opposite side of the hall. His voice was silken, somehow smooth and inviting under the click of his plated boots hitting the hard marble beneath.

Rose watched him curiously. "I suppose this was somehow apart of your great plan?"

The veiled man chuckled warmheartedly. "But of course. You do not think that for one second I trusted your incarceration with these incompetent halfwits did you?" His covered arms stretched out on both sides to emphasize the point, "Someone as capable and resourceful as yourself cannot be merely shackled and thrown into a dungeon. In fact I'd wager your capture was a calculated move from the beginning." The figure was addressing only Rose now, and Zack once again felt somehow considered a nonfactor by comparison.

"You seem to presume a lot about me" Rose said serenely. "I wonder if under that hood of yours we have perhaps at some point come into contact? If so I regret not killing you earlier. But now it seems you have given me the chance to make amends if that is indeed the case."

Another frivolous crackle. "Rose my dear, is it wise to rush headlong into an opponent you do not know the capabilities of? Or perhaps you'll send your comrade here in first, after all you must have him around for some reason, so why not a guinea pig?"

Zack could stay silent no longer. "Awfully confident for someone who's standing that far away. Why not come a little closer so I can show you just how much of a 'guinea pig' I really am?"

"I do not take pleasure in squashing insects such as yourself. You'd do well to know your place, be a good lad and let people with any real influence work this one out hm?"

Zack growled furiously. "Listen you son of a bitch, you can talk trash all you want, in the end you'll-"

"Zack stop" Rose said, raising her voice to a whip crack. Zack did, glaring at her with open disapproval. "Can't you see he's trying to bait you? Take hold of your emotions" Rose followed in a softer voice.

"Ever on a tight leash eh? I see, I see." Hebegan to step closer once more, fixing his attention back on Rose. "I'm not ordinary soldier or mercenary you know. I've already managed to subdue most of your Dragoon cohorts as they tried to raid this very castle."

Rose stiffened despite herself and immediately regretted the momentary showing of outward uncertainty. For all she knew he was bluffing, trying to get under her skin the same way he had Zack. He appeared crafty in that kind of way and while she could not see the expression of what was most certainly now a confident assurance she could most definitely feel it, emanating like rippling waves from within the darkness of his hood. Rose then relaxed and fall back into a not so rigid posture.

"They put up an admirable fight to be sure, but you see I have something that gives me a rather strong advantage. If you like, I invite you to find out for yourself."

"Back me up" Rose snarled as she dashed forwards, closing the considerable distance in a few frighteningly quick moments that Zack didn't think he could match on his fastest day, and he had been told on numerous occasions he himself possessed remarkable acceleration. Yet as fast as she was, Cloke appeared to match that ferocious velocity with little effort. Rose arced and jabbed furiously, her silver blade but a blur to Zack's darting eyes, but he evaded each blow with well timed steps. It was like a man performing a kind of elaborate line dance, his feet keeping in rhythm with a tune that only he could see. This went on for a short while before Cloke's hand dipped inside his shroud and finally produced a weapon of his own. A jet of what looked like incendiary flame burst out of his hand and struck Rose's sword like a substance that was actually solid, her blade pushing against his pillar of solid fire in a brief test of strength. Rose lost that short battle, Cloke forcing her to retreat a few steps with a lazy push of one arm, but the reason soon became apparent that she didn't lose because she lacked strength but rather due to obvious surprise. Her blue eyes displayed unabashed astonishment as she observed the surging translucent inferno that had to exceed two meters with open disbelief.

_The Dragon Buster? Impossible! It was destroyed along with the Moon That Never Sets. _

"A marvelous weapon isn't it?" he said, one hands running over the scaly texture of the ruby dragon shaped pommel full of lavish orbs and encrusted barbs that fanned around the indented handle within the middle. Beyond the pommel's gaping dragon maw spurted what on first inspection appeared to be yellow and orange flame, but in reality it was a thin tangible edge of what looked like glass reflecting such colours. "But don't worry; I shall take great care of this wonderful artifact."

Zack darted towards Cloke from the side, having edged closer and closer during their short discussion until he was within flanking distance. The enveloped figure however as Rose already guessed was aware of this all along. Lunging with his hulking spear, Zack moved with a sluggishness that appeared only a fraction of the speed when compared to Rose and Cloke's earlier flurry. Moving to the side with a casualness that was insulting, Cloke watched the curved face lanced past him with disinterest, his knee as Zack would find out to be reinforced with a mesh of steel moving up with a suddenness Rose had trouble following and burying itself within the center of Zack's abdomen. Zack doubled over in pain and surprise, but his endurance had been underestimated. Recovering from the would be debilitating shot to the stomach with uncanny swiftness, Zack grunted and heaved the pole arm which had pointed to the pristine floor as a result of his twist and swept it towards Cloke's face. Caught momentarily off guard with his rapid resurgence Cloke only barely managed to move his head away from the halberd's intended course. It was so close in fact that the protruding spine that jutted atop the narrow axe head caught the top of his hood and tore it off while he was stepping away, his features now on display for both Rose and Zack to see.

A moment of shocked silence filled the massive hall.

"Wen!" Zack cried, incredulous. Rose even had trouble believing it herself, the aging face and bushy blonde beard was the same sure enough, but the expression of open contempt that had plastered across his features was so far removed from his usual warm, if a little grave complexion that it took several long moments to completely process.

Cloke, or Wen as it now was let out a long regrettable sigh, his face dropping downward as if to bow. When his head rose again the look of disdain had been replaced by one of indifference.

"How vexing" he said in a tone that was so mournful it was almost believable. "I was hoping to keep my identity hidden, at least a little longer. Alas things rarely go the way we went them to."

"What the hell is going on!" Zack roared, verging hysterical. "What are you doing hiding behind a cloak fighting us!"

Rose, who had now understood as much as she could and surmised much more, already came to terms with the fact that they had been betrayed from the start and he had been pulling the strings of both of them all along. To her he was now an enemy and she readied herself as such, raising her rapier skyward with her right hand in her usual battle position.

"Zack get a handle on yourself" Rose advocated sharply. But she may as well be talking to someone who is deaf.

"Isn't it obvious?" Wen said flatly. "You were all my pawns from the beginning, and so easily manipulated too."

"Zack!" Rose barked, trying to shout some sense into him. It was a losing battle, his body began to tremble, his finds clenching and unclenching around his weapon.

"No…" Zack said in denial, refusing to accept the fact he was betrayed once more. "That can't be, this is just a part of your larger plan right?" His voice was pleading now, and Rose felt a sting of pathetic pity for the crumbling warrior.

Wen laughed merrily. "Of course it's a part of my plan, but that plan doesn't involve national liberation." An evil smile cracked across his mouth, his eyes full of perverse delight as he broke apart the man he pretend to be like a father to. "You were all so easy to use, so ready to rally behind a man you never really knew. It serves you all right, if you want something done you do it yourself, not rely on the power and influence of others."

Wen turned to Rose, leaving Zack a shaking, dispirited mess. "As for you, you can avoid getting both yourself and him killed. All you have to do is hand over your Dragoon Spirits."

"You can't be serious?" Rose responded coldly. "You really think we'd just hand them over to you?"

"No, no I don't. But I still like my opponents to know in the fleeting moments before their deaths that they did have a second option."

"Our victories, our defeats, our sacrafices… All of that was for nothing!" Zack bellowed at the top of his lungs as tears streaked his crimson cheeks. "We all laid our lives down for you, and all the while you were feeding us to the machine you were discreetly controlling!.. You… You…" Zack could say no more as he unleashed an emotional howl as the lives of everyone that was sacrificed flashed through his mind. The atmosphere surrounding him grew hot, then began to sear. A plume erupted around him so intense Rose had to retreat several meters to prevent her body from turning into a pile of embers. The width and height of the blaze that had engulfed Zack's body continued to grow until it appeared it would continue to do so until it burned the entire hall. But as suddenly as it had come it had disappeared, leaving a furious and volatile transformed Zack in its wake.

Pointing his halberd towards Wen, which had also undergone a transformation, the steel coated in garnet dragon scales which was infinitely stronger than anything man could conjure, Zack floated a few inches off the ground and growled an atonal pledge.

"For all the wrongs you have wrought, I shall send you to hell." His wings fluttered a few times and propelled him high in the air.

"Zack you fool, don't attack him in that form!" Rose shouted. Either he didn't hear or he ignored her, an aura of charging flame began to fuse around him.

"Final Burst!" And like an arrow shot from a tightly notched bow, Zack blasted forwards, his spear held out in front of him while the circle of molten hot fire encased him like a ball, leaving a trajectory of trailing fire behind him.

Rose, who had realized immediately Zack's askew emotions would cloud his sense of vigilance did the only thing she could do. She could not hope to match the flight speed of a Dragoon Knight, but she could try to deter his path. Tossing a scantly charged ball of dark energy, Rose hurled it a few yards in front of where Wen was standing, his face shrewd and unafraid. The dark matter struck the floor and explode in a blanketing wall of dark flame, forcing Zack to abandon his course and fly upwards to evade the rain of conflagration.

"You idiot!" Rose chastised hotly. "Do you have any idea the power his weapon holds!"

Zack, who slowly began to descend towards the floor as the darkfire began to evaporate glanced at her then the weapon Wen was holding.

"Does it even matter! He can't hope to match the power of a Dragoon warrior!" Zack barked back furiously.

"Imbecile! That sword posses the power to cut Dragon's like parchment, one of very few weapons that could be relied on in a battle against such a beast!"

"What does that matter, do I look like a bloody dra-"

"Where do you think your very armour comes from!" Rose cut in, her tolerance at an end. Zack glanced at his red body armor and with a few moments free of his binding rage he finally understood what he should have at once: His armour would not protect him from such a weapon. But even if that was the case, if he could kill Wen first then the point was moot wasn't it?"

"Just where do you think you're looking?" A voice questioned from behind. Zack turned his head, only just second's prior descending low enough that he was once more merely hovering, and Wen took the opportunity to make his move. In the blink of an eye he had managed to materialize behind the Red-Eyed warrior, startling him out of his ill-timed reverie. Burning pain that felt like a cauterizing wound began at the bottom left most part of his back and travelled up towards his right shoulder. Zack not only felt pain but also a loss of control of his body as it crashed down to the unforgiving base beneath.

Falling on all fours the pain intensified sharply, so sharply it was blinding. Clenching his jaw so tightly he sunk his teeth into the inside of his mouth for fear of biting through his tongue or mashing his teeth together into dust, Zack felt his remaining strength and possible life force flow out of him like a cascading river. He eventually fell from his hands and knees flat onto the cold surface of the floor and realized with a distant kind of comprehension that the reason for his fading strength was because he had reverted to his human form. None of that mattered though, the only thing that did was the flaring pain that threatened to overwhelm him.

"Let us renegotiate shall we?" Wen implored, aiming the Dragon Buster towards the center of Zack's back. "Give me your Dragoon Spirit, or I will kill him, as well as yourself and take them from you both the hard way."

"Don't… don't give him a damn thing…" Zack hissed in a voice so far removed from his usual one that it took Rose a moment to realize it was Zack who had actually said it.

Wen placed a boot on his lower back, eliciting a sharp moan of pain. "Quiet my pawn."

Rose's features remained stone, her silence a clear refusal to his request.

"As callous as ever I see, even when faced with the life of one of your few remaining comrades." Wen droped his gaze to a writhing Zack, who still bore the added burden of his heavy foot. "You see, you are nothing, insignificant even to those you think care for you. I hope you contemplate this in your last remaining moments and realize that delivering death is the kindest thing I can do for you." Wen raised his sword a notch, taking deliberate time to try and break the standoff and draw Rose into a final moment surrender. When it became apparent that such a thing would not happen his eyes turned icy.

Then the hall came to life, much the same way the ally had within Kazas when Rose had been captured. Soldiers poured in from every entry, the front, the twisting stairs and various elevators. They circled the three of them en mass, covering all levels of the Great Hall, their weapons drawn and ready. Descending from the very lift Wen had used earlier the King himself stepped forward, wearing a foxy grin under his moustache.

"Sorry to interrupt" he said as the room returned to silence once more. Wen turned towards him, dangerous annoyance sparkling within his eyes.

"Rommel…" Said the cloaked figure, eyes leering. "Just what is it you think you're doing?"

The King's grin widened. "Funny you should ask. You see, I was just thinking what a nuisance you have become." His voice quavered, but Rose didn't think it had anything to do with nerves. "The game is over my unlucky friend, it is time I teach you a lesson in respect, and perhaps more importantly that no one is above the King of the strongest nation in Endiness."

Archers from the higher levels drew their bows while the soldiers at ground levels began to close in on Wen. The dark figure watched this with unconcerned indifference. Taking his foot of Zack, who had at this point remained still, Wen began to pace towards Hytas until he was barred by a phalanx of armed guards, pointing their various sharp objects towards him. Wen abruptly let out a gale of laughter, surprising everyone within the hall, and once it died down he dipped his hand inside his cloak and pulled out a green object Rose recognized immediately. The Jade orb glimmered as gusts of wind swept through the foyer, murmurs of uncertainty breaking out amongst the soldiers. Wen's facial features then sharpened into an expression of someone who was completely and utterly mad.

"You're wrong, poor King. The game has only begun."


	14. Chapter 14: An Illuminating Truth

**Chapter 14: An Illuminating Truth**

Shears of gusty currents embraced Wen violently as what would usually be invisible squalls now perceptible thanks to the mixture of leaves, flowers and petals of various kinds and shades that trailed like coloured pastures, giving the force an eerie kind of living quality. It lifted Wen into the air with a gentleness that was baffling to the casual observer, his cloak blown off revealing his lime robe beneath, and while he floated in what looked to be the eye of the storm, he laughed manically.

Rose, who was aware what was happening the moment the jade orb came into view, rushed towards the fallen Zack, fighting harshly against the strengthening winds. Once she reached her wounded comrade she tried to pull him to his feet. Zack was uncooperative, his body buckling as she tried to keep him upright under his own weight. On two occasions she had to catch him to stop him from crashing back towards the ground, his grunts of pain melting into screams. Once she caught a look at his barely lucid half-lidded eyes, she realized she would have to carry him if he was to have any hope at leaving the foyer alive.

_It's hard enough battling the winds on my own, let alone with the added weight of a limp body. _The brief thought of transforming herself crossed her mind, but as she glanced towards the ceiling where Wen was still laughing as his form began its own alteration she knew that would remove any hope of slipping out of the castle unnoticed amid the chaos. If not for his Dragon Buster she thought she could best him in a duel between Dragoons, if only by virtue of experience. But although she only crossed blades with him briefly, she knew enough to understand he was no amateur when it came to fencing, and facing him in a battle of Dragoon prowess while equipped with such a deadly weapon would be too much of a risk she was willing to take. Nor was she willing to risk battling him in her human form. The only thing left was to retreat as he turned his attention to the mutiny in progress. With a mighty heave Rose slung the defenseless and now immobile Zack over her right shoulder, one hand cross her chest and pinning his legs to her body for stability, and began to move towards the huge castle doors that stood like a beacon of golden hope some many meters away. To Rose it may as well be miles.

She had a brief time where the winds were at her back, making the straining task of carrying the much larger Zack considerably easier. But then the gales suddenly shifted, and they were pushing against her once more. She braced, her struggling legs faltering a little, but despite her lithe frame she was very sturdy, perhaps not as strong as yonder bear atop her shoulders and back, but strong enough to push through the task that needed to be done, even against the increase storm.

What did worry her was that perhaps Wen had changed direction because he already detected her attempted escape. She couldn't crane her neck behind in the direction she thought he was levitating due to Zack's resting body impeding such neck movement so she could not verify this without turning her whole body around and to do so which ran the risk of being pushed down by the currents. But when she spotted ahead the soldiers trying to exit by the droves she thought, if she was lucky, that was the primary reason, to cut off their escape.

Then the winds died down for a moment. As they did the booming echo of Wen's voice bounced off every wall of the Great Hall.

"You have all sided with the wrong leader today foolish grunts. Your offense: treason. Your punishment: death!" He muttered something else incomprehensible to Rose's ears but she felt the subsequent dangerous shift in the atmosphere.

What proceeded next was a kind of slaughter you might see a cat create locked in a small box with dozens of tiny mice. The wind kicked up again, but this time it was focused from a certain point. A twister manifested from within the center of the hall, sucking in and spitting out any close enough to be gripped. Shrapnel along with pieces of torn marble and other materials were sucked in, the mini tornado now a funnel of circulating carnage as the debris sliced and crashed into those unlucky enough to be caught. Then they were tossed out, bodies and fragments of matter tossed in every direction. Rose had to adjust the way she was walking, shuffling sideways almost like a crab so she could keep an eye on the butchery that was taking place behind her. She felt the suction herself, despite being nearly a hundred meters away but she was able to fight against it, and as she edged ever so closer to the doors that would become her liberation it almost became a non factor. What was a factor were the various items and broken cadavers being shot towards her like human pin balls. On three occasions she had to step on one side or another, one particular dangerous slab of floor nearly taking her out like a small wrecking ball. In the end however she was able to escape with Zack unscathed, and once she spilled out into the giant, lamp lit bridge that connected the city and castle, she suspected the worst was now behind her, both figuratively and literally.

But Rose couldn't shake the feeling that she hadn't really escaped but been allowed to escape, as if she were nothing more a spectator to his display of wicked power.

_He could have likely ended both of our lives if he wanted to._ She supposed their deaths weren't on the agenda, at least not yet. He seemed aware of the fact there was a coup in the making, and perhaps her and Zack were merely used so he could rat out those who would move against him. After all if nothing else he was full of himself, full of hubris and arrogance, completely assured that he could swat them at any time like a swatter would a fly.

_I still don't know a lot, at least not yet but I do know two things _She thought as she neared the end of the bridge and entered the catacombs of woven streets that was Kazas. _One he was after our Dragoon Spirits, and two, he will come to regret not killing me when he had the chance._ Of the latter point, it was a promise she made to herself. Wen would not live to see the dawning of a new season.

* * *

Amika remained behind one of the large supporting pillars on one of the higher levels that, a giant, granite column that rose from the bottom of the castle to the top. So strong and reinforced were these pillars that all sixteen of them that littered the Great Hall remained totally untouched by the cyclonic winds that tore apart almost the rest of the foyer. The battalions of soldiers that streamed in earlier however couldn't share that accomplishment. As Amika, a mere shadow watching the proceedings below hoping that she wasn't detected but thought she likely was, surveyed the damage, noting with a distant kind of awareness that could find not one living life form besides herself, her King and the man who created the destruction. What was at the forefront of her mind was the danger her King was now in, and what she could do to stop his all but certain fatality.

_I could only postpone it at best _the dark woman thought morbidly. But be that as it may, she would have to try. To merely watch her leader get exterminated in front of her while she herself did nothing was a crime against her both her honour and her people's honour, a sin that she could never live with. A dated belief perhaps but she thought it better she died honourably than as a coward.

Hytas, who had so far not moved since the winds died down could only watch the approaching Wen with eyes both painful and a little fearful, despite his best efforts to mask both. His legs had been severed to the bone by roaming pieces of sharp objects that tore apart his metal grievers like they were cloth, resulting in the King sitting with his shredded legs out in front of him helpless in a cumulating pool of his own royal blood. His battered body had been met with the terrifying force of other, blunter objects as well by the looks, his face a collage of blue and purple while his regal breast plate had been bent inwards with the force of something that must have been tremendous.

"So you survived after all" Wen stated with inflated amusement. His form shifted, the brilliant jade armour that encased his body that was all but impenetrable melting away into hundreds of leaves and petals, much like those present within the raging winds.

_He has let his guard drop! _Amika thought with furious anticipation. _Perhaps I have a chance yet. _One hand instinctively moving to one of two moon shaped daggers that hung from her side, grasping the handle with hopeful eagerness. She was still high up, many stories high up in fact, but this wasn't she had struck from such obscure positions by any means. Having captained Sandora's elite assassination branch before becoming right hand lieutenant of the new king striking from obscure positions was what she was all about. Plus, this old dog had a few tricks up her sleeve, and while she was too high by any normal means for her to drop down without simply turning into paste upon impact with the broken floor, she did have access to darker magicks that could make such things possible. That's not to say she had the finesse or expertise of a mage or Dragoon warrior of course, but in this situation it was more than enough. In the end the matter would be resolved with her blades and her blades alone. Shifting back away from the plateau of the upper corridor so she could move around to get a better vantage point, Amika began to make her move.

* * *

"This must gladden you immensely" Hytas said with a strained voice. Violent fits of blood spluttered coughs followed his remark, his long, grey moustache now laced with crimson.

"Oh you have no idea" Wen said, smiling. He was upon him now, only inches from where the King now stood, as if he was somehow bowing to a higher power. If nothing else that fact was what annoyed the King the most, not the fact he was dying or would soon die by the hands of this detestable son of a bitch, but the fact he would dying on his ass while Cloak towered above him like a domineering edifice. Of course in Wen's mind it was a fitting end.

"Your time will come Cloke" The King continued despite the tremors of pain that it sent through his broken sternum.

Wen merely sighed, already bored. "Always the clichéd final words." Then his face brightened. "But you are correct in some ways King, my time _will _come indeed. And what a wonderful moment it shall be as I transcend into godhood. Also know this stupid King, know my name as you pass into the void, know my name and know it well: The man who struck you down was not Cloke but Wen Eisenhower"

Hytas, despite his dimming vision, likely due to the pain, loss of blood or the fact he was about to die, probably a combination of all three, fancied he spotted a shadow upon the higher floors moving to his left. At first he thought it an illusion, his fading mind playing tricks in its dying moments, but it appeared a few seconds later once more, and this time he could make out the flash of two eyes. Once he saw them he knew who they belonged to at once. _Amika… ever the silent predator…_

He shifted his gaze away at once; worried Wen might notice he had fixated his sight on something and discover her, if she wasn't already. If he was aware of her presence Wen paid no heed to it. He continued on with his prattle, high noting himself before he makes the inevitable strike which would finally end his agonizing life. _Or perhaps I'll simply die on my own first; god knows he loves the sound of his own voice. _

And there it was again, a flash, but this time he saw the shimmer of steel. _Shit, she plans to make a move on him already! _He appreciated the gesture and would love nothing more than to watch this worm fall before he could savour his kill, not to mention he himself would be spared if his injures weren't fatal. But as talented as Amika was he knew she would not best him at this juncture. All it would do was add another toll to the death count. And, perhaps he conceded in his final minutes, perhaps, just perhaps he really did care for her, the only person he looked out for other than himself. Saving one after killing a lifetime of people directly or indirectly wouldn't do anything to alter the damnation he thought he'd serve once he went down under or up top or wherever the hell it was you went once you passed, but it would please the King the know that he was capable of good after all.

Hytas raised a hand and made a curving hand signal, fixing Amika with a final, powerful stare before he averted his eyes, not daring to place them on her a third time. It was a risk, perhaps Cloke, or Wen as his named turned out to be would realize he was not displaying a random gesture as he began to open death's door, but signal for another who was watching. Nor was he sure Amika would listen once she received it; she was a hot head when it came to certain situations, but all he could do now was hope that preservation would win out.

"And now" Wen said, his tone sharp and malicious in contrast to his earlier speech which went largely unnoticed. "It is time for you to die. Had you been a loyal servant none of this would have happened, so –"

"A King bows to no one" Hytas spat with as much venom and scorn he could muster. Wen's features darkened, obvious irritation at being interrupted. But instead of reproaching the King with words he let his sword do the talking, in one swift, fluid cut that started just below the Hytas' neck and ended just above his left thigh. Instead of a blow that Hytas thought would slay him instantly; he was dealt one that brought him as close to the brink of death as one could be without actually killing them. The King was left a few long, anguishing minutes to bleed to death before passing into the blissful arms of the reaper, perhaps a final punishment for resisting the man that would be his executioner.

* * *

Amika had understood the message immediately, and while it took a brief struggle to quell the almost undeniable urge to intervene despite what Hytas had wanted, to go ahead and try and flay this Wen piece by piece until she was tearing away at his haughty grin, and order was an order, he was still her King and she his lieutenant. But she was more than a simple soldier or servant; they shared a connection that went beyond mere words and orders, evident by the way she could discern an entire message by the wave of one hand. She had served Hytas not only as King but also as a General of the Army, where he became renowned for his tactical genius. Even before that when he was a climbing the ranks captain to commander which felt like almost a life time ago she had been serving him as a conscript when he happen to came upon her lost and far away from home but noting instantly her dangerous potential. Hytas, as cruel and selfish as he was, was the closest thing to a father she ever had, although a father of a different kind than most. Instead of showing her with qualities of love, patience and respect he showed her the other side of the spectrum: How to manipulate such concepts to use to your advantage, how disregarding everything and everyone but your self could stop you from falling into such useless trapping where perceptions of love and trust could be in turn used against you. He showed her a world where every man and woman was for their self, a world where she managed to thrive on.

As such she gained an intimate understanding of his mind and came to comprehend him in a way few others did. What she now comprehended was his dying wish: To retreat for the time being and find a way to send this son of a bitch tumbling towards the underworld with him, where Hytas would be waiting to send his regard. That time, as unfortunate as it was, was not now. To attempt an assassination now would surely end in failure, and dash any hopes of delivering the vengeance her King so desperately wanted. With a resigned determination that cut her in a way nothing had for so many years (Hytas would chastise her for such foolish emotions, he had gotten himself into his own mess and it was of no obligation to her to do anything) Amika stole a final glance at her King as Wen stood above him triumphant, his strangely ethereal sword in raised while he was in the middle of delivering what looked to be a rather gloating speech, and she dissolved into the darkness behind her a final time.

As she glided through the halls and chambers of the castle that she had come to know so well, her sensitive ears detected a final wail from her King, and once more felt that shattering sensation in her mind. She pushed it aside as best she could; there was no room for such fragility or weakness especially not now. There wasn't a thing she could have done even if she had tried anyway, all she could do now was escape the castle and plan her next few moves like a player in a chess game. She would bide her time for a while until she could come up with a plan of action, but come hell or high water she would get her chance to deliver what would be her greatest assassination yet.

* * *

_But first I'll need some help _she thought grimly as she navigated the secret corridors and tunnels that led to an alternate exit. _And I know just who to get it from._

Already the beginnings of a brilliant plan were coming together in her head. Amika smiled, a ferocious, predatory smile that sharpened her face like a prowling cat, portending future malice and wickedness, and as she approached the largely unknown second exit that led her to an old vault in one of the broken old homes in the upper level of Kazas, she found herself drowning in it. Hatred after all was certainly a much better emotion to succumb to than grief, as her late King would have said. A fitting eulogy indeed.

Rose had been carrying Zack through the winding passageways of Kazas for the better part of twenty minutes when she felt him struggle against her shoulder.

"Down…please" Zack wheezed in a tone that was half gasping. At first Rose wasn't willing, not liking the idea of loitering within the capital of enemy territory, as divided as it currently was. That would change soon; Wen would rein in control of the province in one capacity or another. Rose doubted after displaying such a fearsome feat of power few would object if any did at all. In the end it would only be a matter of time before he had total command and once that happened she thought he'd run a much tighter ship than the man previously ruling it. While Rose didn't witness the execution of Hytas first hand she was sure it had come to pass, as sure as the sun would rise the following day after a momentary glimpsing into Wen's murderous eyes the moment he laid them upon the King. With Wen in direct power it made things a whole lot more difficult, and while she could slip away from Kazas during the midst of this timely confusion without too much a problem to linger would risk another entrapment. They had already been at the mercy of Wen once this afternoon; Rose didn't plan on adding to that tally.

But be that as it may Zack's pressing became insistent. She herself was tired, the task of carrying a bulky grown man sapping her vigour considerably so in the end she relented and granted both Zack and herself a small respite. Coming to a slow halt she turned to one of the a side of the narrow stony archway and laid Zack back first in a sitting position against one of the many rotting wooden housing containers that were half of Rose's height. Rose scanned the seemingly (although most certainly not) empty broken buildings that towered behind each side of the alley. When she detected nothing, at least as best she could tell, she turned her attention back to her grunting companion.

He didn't look good as Rose gave him a quick sweep of her eyes. His face was a coat of perpetration, his face as pale as an alabaster statue with glazed eyes that rolled towards the back of his eye sockets. For a frightful moment Rose actually thought he was dying, but after feeling Zack grasp her arm with the strength a dying man couldn't possible have possessed, that idea was dispelled immediately.

_He's in shock _Rose assessed with profound relief.

"It's… painful as hell but… I don't think it's that bad" Zack murmured with understandable strain. "But…check to be sure…" he went on moaning, his body seeming to send bolts of sharp pain with every movement.

"Quiet, just focus on breathing" Rose coaxed softly. With careful hand she placed them on Zack's shoulders then pulled him forward a little. He winced agonizingly as she expected, but as she inspected the wound what she did not expect was only a shallow gash that ran across his back from left to right. It looked like it had been cauterized by something hot, the wound closing almost as fast as it had been made. In Fact if not for the faint traces of blood it could almost pass for an old scar, a trait common to those who've had the unfortunate experience of struck by such a fearsome weapon as the Dragoon Buster, for it didn't cut you like the traditional blade did but seared you with unfathomable energies that rendered even the impenetrable Dragoon Armour useless. His flimsy shirt had been torn in the slice, and although it was certainly wide, perhaps as wide a thick finger, it wasn't nearly as deep as she predicted. Even though he was alive and would continue to live, she worried long term permanent damage, rendering him at best a hampered fighter, at worst an immobile vegetable. Inspecting the wound more closely it appeared nether would eventuate, leave a nice scar for sure, but impact upon his future movements? It didn't seem it would.

"You're right, the wound _isn't_ bad" Rose confirmed in awe.

"I knew it" Zack hissed, trying to regulate his breathing. "He… could have killed me but didn't, why?"

Rose quieted him once more. "I don't know" She eventually answered, but while she herself wondered such a question it was far in the back of her mind. What was in the front of her mind was the possibility of an ambush, and so Rose stole another sudden look around to make sure they were still alone. An injured individual was fair game for the picking, even with a capable looking comrade such as herself. Such an opportunity as dangerous as it was was often one too good to pass up for many desperate folk in a city so rife with famine and poverty. They had spent too long in the one position already; she wanted to quickly make a move on.

"We're spent enough time here, it's time to move on" Rose said, preparing to lift her comrade and carry him once more. Her aching muscles seemed to protest at the very mention but she put that too towards the back of her mind. It was inconsequential at the moment; painful muscles could be rested once they were in a safe area that would allow such a luxury.

"Just keep me up right, I can move" Zack assured with a murmur. Rose glanced at him uncertainly.

"Even if you can it won't be without great stress on your damaged body, plus you'd be moving at a pace too slow."

"It'll be quick enough with adequate support. You won't be able to carry me too much further in any event; your body is at its limit, that much I could feel as your muscles began to slack. I called a stop for you, not for me. I may be in pain but it's bearable."

"I'm far from my limit" Rose argued, and her body twinged once more as if on cue to prove otherwise. "It'll be faster if-"

"It'll do us no good if you so worn from carting me around that if we do find trouble you're unable to defend. I can move, but if there's any fighting to be done it'll have to be done by you, so preserve some of your strength and just keep me upright."

Rose looked ready to protest further, but the steel in his eyes had a frightening effect on her resolve. "Fine, but if you're too slow or I think you're going to injure yourself further I'm carrying you whether you like it or not. You're no good to me crippled."

"Charmed" Zack said with a rugged grin. "Now get me up."

Rose knelt to his side and swung an arm under his, lifting him precariously to a vertical basis. Zack wavered once on his feet, even under Rose's support, but after given a few seconds to adapt to the pressure of his objecting back, he took a few tentative steps forward. Tentative steps turn a little more certain as they progressed a few meters until they settled into a steady rhythm of small but quick strides down the winding streets, still not attracting second glances from any of the drifting townsfolk that eventually came into view. They were getting closer to the exit.

_He has impressive endurance_ _if nothing else _Rose thought as she glanced at his drawn and focused face, the main part of the city now in clear view.

Yet despite they're impressive progress it still took them the better part of another hour to leave Kazas in their rearview, most of that time spent running into dead ends and circulating loops. They ran into no guards, not even at the exit that was still littered with the remains of the few unfortunate sentries that tried to impede Rose's earlier invasion. Zack winced outwardly once he spotted the burned remains of what was once a human being, but Rose paid no heed to his unnecessary gentleness. Her mind was set firmly on the task of support Zack, which while easier than carrying his dead weight in full, was still a trying task as time quickly slipped away and the need for a proper rest became almost too strong to deny.

"Where to now?" Zack huffed as they staggered past the front main gates. Rose halted a moment to survey the surroundings, but all that met her was a blanket of grassy lowlands along with distant rain forest canopies in the form of overhanging Palms and Figs.

_Where to set up camp _Rose wondered, although the term camp would be used loosely, for they weren't really camping as much as merely lying under the sky in a spot Rose hoped would be both safe and a little covered. No tent with them this time, although if they were lucky they could perhaps spark a campfire for warmth, which really wasn't needed given the warm humidity of the landscape.

The couple headed due west towards the south-western point of Sandora, the Melidana Peninsula, although of the aforementioned locale they certainly wouldn't reach, the peninsula and subsequent Aquaria Reef within the Scattered Sea was still many hundreds of miles west, but after forty-five minutes of more awkward stumbling they reach a kind of small clearing of trees that branched out a good distance before melting back into endless grasslands and marshes. The Grove, one of many Rose suspected was shady thanks to the age old oak trees that provided a kind of sanctuary from the dying sun as well as abundant in ground level shrubs and ferns that would mask their presence from any threats that relied on their eye sight alone (smell of course would be a different story) unless they were right upon them. Not only that but the grove had a kind of peaceful, hospitable aura, as if some begin spirit made its home and was welcoming any such weary traveler to come in and rest their heads a while.

"This will have to do, I can't take us any further anyway" Rose said as they entered the clearing. Once in far enough Rose sat Zack against one of the giant oaks, using their gnarled roots as a rest to place him upon. Once free of the burden, Rose's body felt instant relief as her own body sagged into an adjacent root herself.

"Rest, I'll take watch for tonight" Zack said as he settled himself as comfortable as he could. The pain was still bothering him, but it had subsided from what it once was, so in that respect it was very much manageable. Rose on the other hand looked utterly sleep deprived; dark shadows had set under her eyes, her face lacking almost as much colour as Zack's.

"You ran yourself ragged to get to Kazas didn't you? By the look of you I'd say you haven't had a decent sleep in three days."

"Nearly seven actually" Rose amended, her voice cracking into a horse exhaustion. She appeared to be nodding off already, her head lolling to one side.

"Then sleep, I'll keep watch."

"You need sleep as well" Rose refuted without any real conviction.

"I won't be sleeping tonight anyway."

"The pain?" Rose asked remotely. Despite her best efforts to remain awake, her body had other plans.

"…In a sense, yes, but not of the physical kind." He smiled, or tried too, but all that came out was a solemn curve of his lips. No happiness touched his eyes.

Rose mumbled something incoherent before she could not resist the urge of sleep any longer. In fact, when she had awoke to the beating hot sun the following mid morning, she couldn't even remember nodding off.

* * *

Zack meanwhile didn't have the fortune of being able to drift off into sleep where he could find a refuge from his overworked mind. It kept repeating the events in the castle, the betrayal of one of the few men he could trust and more importantly count a close friend. Each time he revisited the scenario fresh emotional misery exploded in his heart, like reopening a physical wound that was only freshly healed. He questioned the treachery what seemed like a million times, but no conceivable answer as to why such a thing had come to pass came to him. Wen had appeared so genuine in everything he did from the way he could rally a group of dispirited fighters into the hearty to the way he spoke quietly yet fleetingly of his dream to create a world without conflict and unnecessary death. Then it diverted to the battle at Rouge and the many before it, battles which seemed so important and in some ways justifiable for the many bystanders that were killed in the crossfire. To look back on all those as mere collateral, planned skirmishes like in a screenplay where the conclusion was already forgone to those few who were in the know darkened his heart He had to fight back tears of both anguish and shame at the thought of those close to him that had died under the one artificial banner. But he didn't let them manifest, couldn't let them manifest. To do so now would mean to descend into a pit of guilt and regret so deep and strong he would likely never be able to climb out of it. Instead he drew upon other, more foreign emotions to help him through his time of destabilize distress: Anger, hate, a lust for vengeance, a will to bring his own brand of justice despite how misplaced it may or may not be.

_If you had been as sharp as I warned you about him _Rose's voice intruded, breaking a part his thoughts. Zack glanced at her sleeping frame, as if she may have actually voiced such a point and wasn't merely a voice in his head. When he saw her dozing peacefully, he thought he must be going mad.

_She'll probably say something like that though _Zack thought with a distant kind of desperate humour. He needed to feel something outside his bubbling abyss of negativity. _Probably not as nice as 'I told you so,' but it'll be something to that effect._

Zack glanced towards the night sky, flecks of distant, seemingly otherworldly white sprayed across the hovering gloom. Zack also thought much like Rose had a time earlier that the sky did in fact look somehow lacking without the hovering moon. _A small trade off I suppose in the end for the safety of the planet. _

And for the rest of the night Zack was content to glance at the stars, relishing the sense of familiarity it brought. As with many of the citizens of Fletz, he too took an interest in astronomy. Not to say he had any real gift for it, certainly not one of the very talented and self esteemed Princess Lisa, nor did he have the academic knowledge of the walking astrology encyclopedia Fester, but he did in his own way have a basic kind of communion with the stars, and on certain occasions could glimpse what one could or could not interpret as an omen. On a night like this he felt no such thing from the stars above, to him they were specks of snow as they always were, but it did little to quell the foreboding sense that had settled within his core.

_Before things get better they're going to get worse. For the proverbial dawn that was the supposed light at the end of the tunnel that must wait for the night to be at its darkest before crowning, for our dawn, for my dawn at least, the sun has only just set and the night has only begun to roll in._

There was no reason how why he could no such a thing, but he just did, or thought he did, thought it with every fiber of his being. For the first time in his life as an adult, the thoughtof giving up came upon him, came upon him like a wind that was almost too strong to resist.


	15. Chapter 15: Fissure

**Chapter 15: Fissure**

Rose was stirred from her sleep not by the dazzling light of the new day's sun but by the aroma of frying food. Tendrils of cooked meat invaded her nose like a blanket of fiery smoke, prompting a quick ascension to full lucidity. Until now she was far too weary for something as trivial as hunger by comparison, but now that one primary urge had been sated another took its place.

Zack was huddled around a small fire, cooking what looked like a small fox perhaps, skewered on a makeshift piece of bark, the skinned flesh slowly being turned. Zack noticed her arrival to the land of the living at once.

"Smells nice eh?"

After gazing at the food with almost a hypnotic kind of slack-jawed gawk, Rose fixed her vision on Zack, who looked no better than when she had seen him the previous day.

"You don't look good" she said groggily.

"Early morning compliments are always good" he said as he gave the two skewered meats another small turn.

"I'm being serious; if you're too run down you'll leave yourself not only open to attacks from the outside but from the inside as well. The last thing we need is for you to fall ill."

Zack's mood took a sharp, contrasting turn. "What happens to me is my own problem."

"Not if it gets us both killed."

Zack seemed to pause a moment before his let out a sigh, his face dissolving into one of melancholy so deep it made Rose flinch a little despite herself.

"I don't know what I'm going to do at the present anyway. I feel I'm in way over my head here and without a cause to fight anymore I feel directionless." Zack hand her a stick of cooked meat which she took without a word.

"Then find a new one. If nothing else you are a Dragoon Knight, so your involvement is as eligible as mine."

"I thought revenge would drive me, but I can't seem to muster even that. I've accomplished nothing and am no closer to accomplishing anything then when I began on this stupid crusade."

Rose said nothing, only ate her food in silence. After this passed for a time and Zack didn't get a response he was obviously yearning for, he became impatient.

"What should I do? You've faced perils and betrayals before, what motivated you? What kept you going?" His voice was beseeching, bordering desperate.

"A sole focus to never weaver" Rose said as she placed her food down a moment. "Has your objective changed that much? You wish to deliver justice and peace, so to do so means we'll have to kill Wen. If anything, now that the mastermind has been revealed we're a few steps closer to pulling the curtains on this absurd show."

"You told me an objective of peace was a foolish and naive one!" Zack said fiercely.

"Those are my opinions yes but why should that have any bearing on your own beliefs? If they're that easily dissuaded than it's no wonder you were so easily manipulated and now find yourself purposeless. If you're going to have a belief, at least have some conviction to go with it."

Zack shot to his feet, wincing a little at consequent pain from sudden movement. "Is it that hard to offer just a _little_ support! I know you have your own problems hell we all do, but not everyone is like you, I'm not a damned stone statue who's forgotten what it is to be human. I just need a word of encouragement, to hear that hunting down this monster is the best thing I can do at this present time."

"Sit and cool off a few minutes" Rose suggested. Zack seemed to take this as being brushed off, so he stood his ground defiantly.

Rose took a few more bites of meat, trying to ignore his imploring stare, and when he wouldn't cease she dropped her food and stood up, turning on her heels and walking in the opposite direction without a word.

* * *

"Hey!" Zack called after her following close behind. "What is your problem!"

"Look you're disgruntled I understand that, and I even understand what you're doing at the moment might be an outlet for your emotional strain and that's fine. But what I cannot do is be your emotional support Zack, if you've honestly lost hope for yourself and your quest then the best thing you can do is hand me your Dragoon Spirit and abandon it."

Zack gave her a queer look for a moment before his expression turned defensive. "Like I can actually give it up. I have nothing else to do, no home to go to, no friends or family I can retire to."

"Then why are you complaining? It's futile to-"

"Because I need to! It's an outlet, a way of expressing myself so it doesn't destroy me from the inside! Obviously I'm not going to stop my walk away from this but I need to hear some words of encouragement, something, anything! I've just lost the one of the most important people in my life in the worst way possible, is it so hard to believe its left me a little dispirited?

Now it was Rose's turn to be defensive. "I don't know what you expect of me, but it's a role I cannot fill. Nor do I feel inclined to, you're a comrade true enough but only by happenstance, nothing more. I do not see you a close or even a friend, just a fellow adventurer who for the moment happens to cross paths. You want to talk about vanquishing monsters well guess what? There's one right next to you."

"What are you talking about?" Zack said, abashed.

"I'm as dark, twisted an evil as many of the scoundrels you've killed or wish to kill. Hell, I'm a whole lot worse." Her tone was harsh in its defensiveness, even more so then her usual callous sharpness. "When I infiltrated Kazas I was approached by a kid, couldn't be older than seven, and as he asked me if I was Rose, do you know what thought ran through my mind? My initial thought? It was do I have to kill this kid or not. A damn _child _Zack. Do you not understand yet? I have no boundaries or limits, no taboo, no morals or code of honour that forbid me to engage in certain acts. I do what I have to when I have to, no matter the price or target. In that regard it makes me no different than Hytas or even Wen. The only thing that differentiates us is our objectives, they wish for power and control while I don't, but if I did I guarantee I'd be a much worse tyrant than either, so do not look at me as a pillar of damn support."

Zack digested the latest outbreak slowly, gazing into her eyes for any hints of a façade or embellished realities. When Zack couldn't discern an expression of either it both dismayed and disturbed him.

"I tell you this because this is the person you travel and trust your life with. You talk about sinister villains and demons, yet you have one with you right now. You wanted to know about me? The person I truly am? Well this is it, down to my core, this is who I am and will always be."

Zack shook his head stubbornly.

"I don't believe you." And he didn't, how could he? He had seen the good in her, seen a spark of her gentler side. He couldn't fathom her being the tyrant she is making herself out to be. Made mistakes most definitely and done many things that would go against his own gentle nature he suspected, but to put herself on the same level as Wen and Hytas? It was preposterous. "You may have some evil in you and that I do believe, hell we all do Rose, but what is coming out of your mouth right now is just an inflated characterization of your own crushing guilt."

Rose threw her hands up in flailing exasperation. "How can you assume to know me? Or my personality when you hardly know me or my past at all? If you knew even half of the things I've done you'd deserve a recognition of forgiveness for not wanting to string me up where you stand." Rose shut her eyes for a few brief seconds, a hand coming up to lightly massage the bridge of her pointed nose. Her voice had turned feverish, but when she spoke next her tone was devoid of anything resembling human feeling.

"To put it plainly Zack, I am neither a role model you should look up to nor a person you should rely on or even trust. The only thing that we have in common at the moment is we share the same goal. If that changed and you stood between me and my objective I'd kill you in a heartbeat. Despite our time together, despite the fact I'd call you an ally, I'd kill you with no hesitation, no mercy and without a second thought. Even once I'd done the act I'd not spare you further consideration, I'd move on, as I've done so many other times. This is not an inflated characterization or even a threat, it's just the truth. Killing to me is second nature, be it friend, foe or indifferent."

Zack once more searched her piercing blue eyes for any hint of the contrary, but as usual he found none. Those eyes were dark and cold, as if all life had perished and all that remained was husk of black and cobalt.

_No, you're lying!_

Assuming the conversation had come to an end, Rose pushed forward to pass him. But he barred her path, holding his hands out to his sides to put emphasis on that fact. Rose's eyes narrowed dangerously, and Zack had seen it many times before and knew what it meant. It was a stare she fixed numerous unfortunate victims before they fell before her. But this did not deter his resolve, he would find out himself the true kind of person she is, even if he was putting his own life a possible risk. He had nothing else left to do now, she was his only life line and he couldn't bear the thought of his only remaining comrade a fiend as bad as the ones he now hunted.

"Move" Rose implored softly, but the gentleness was deceptive, the flash of her eyes told him she wasn't going to ask a second time.

"No" Zack shot back defiantly. "If you're really as cruel and heinous as you say you are, without a redeemable quality inside you then I cannot let you walk away, not in good conscience. God knows there are enough monsters at the moment as there are."

What proceeded next was a kind of standoff as their eyes locked in a heated battle of wills, but that abruptly ended when Rose extended her arm and struck Zack with a closed fist that slammed into his temple. Zack staggered back, stunned as his vision dimmed and brightened, then felt his legs fall out from under him, plunging ungraciously on his ass. A brief period of vertigo gripped him before all primary senses realigned once again. Then a flaring pain from his still injured back.

Rose then stepped past him, assuming once more the incident had come to a close. But Zack still wasn't finished, clinging on to the faint hope that this was all still a kind of defensive act. He shot out both arms and gripped one of Rose's ankles with his hands, holding on like a vice while the front of his body embraced the ground like a snake.

Rose halted, turning her head half way so she could leer down at him with eyes baleful and unsympathetic. It wasn't just her relentless gaze anymore, but her whole aura and demeanor changed to something so malign it was palpable. What he saw began to fracture his heart along with any hope he had left.

"Let it go Zack, this will only end badly for you."

When he dipped his head earthward, shaking his head vigorously, Zack felt a rain of crumbing blows strike the top of his head, shoulders and back. Fists, forearms and elbows all thumped his body in a flurry, pounding, pounding and pounding. Grunting in pain, his mouth bared like an animalistic sneer to absorb the mounting agony, Zack still refused to let go. Letting go at this point wasn't merely a physical action but one on a deeper conscious level as well and they both knew it. To let go would be to accept Rose's truth, to accept that she really was soul beyond salvation.

The blows came to a cease, Rose obviously coming to the realization that beating him was not going to get either of them anywhere. A brief period of uneasy silence filled the area, but the sound that followed the stillness chilled him to the bone. The sound that broke the silence was the unsheathing of Rose's rapier, a sword she had not at this point drawn against him in a gesture beyond dueling. But a duel this clearly wasn't and to draw steel now meant that she was deadly serious about using it.

Zack felt the cold tip of the blade rest between his shoulder blades.

"This is your final warning Zack. Let go now or die." Her tone was not only a ruthless calm but also assured, assured beyond a shadow of a doubt.

Knowing he wasn't going to like what he saw but doing it against better judgment anyway, Zack raised his bent face to meet hers. Her indomitable mask of malevolent impassiveness was all that greeted him, a chilling, cold caress. They locked eyes for another few moments, hers peering into the pleading eyes of his, on the brink of hysteria, and his peering into hers, finding no final solace or hesitation, and with a resigned stir of defeat Zack dropped his head to the ground and relinquished his grip. Her fading footsteps were the only consolation to his broken spirit, unstoppable tears streaking his bruised and swollen face.

_Damn it! Just what in the hell am I doing anymore!_

Rolling on his painfully aching back, he brought his hands to his face to cover his eyes in an attempt to stem the flow of his anguish. It did no good. As he moved a hand and glanced at what he once thought his closest ally's back, he was a momentarily relieved to be spared the dignity of not being seen bawling like a child who had scraped his knee, but the sight of her back somehow stung him even deeper. First it had been his father who left, the sight Joseph's rear the young Zack's final image of his dad as he set out to pursued the monster that took his mother, then it was Wen, a man who was like a second father who taught him so much that turned out to be nothing but a lie, and now it was Rose, the only person he felt he could any longer trust and call an uncompromising partner.

_Just… what am I supposed to do!_

For that moment at least all he could do was cry as the weight of what felt like the entire world and more came crashing down upon him.

Rose meanwhile who was returning to camp felt no regret or remorse for what she had done. Of those such feelings she was as bare as the Barrens in Tiberoa, only noting with a remote kind of realization that she felt more disconnected now with the world around her and everything that was in it than ever before.

* * *

The sun had journeyed a good portion towards the daytime peak, before it would inevitably begin its decline towards the eastern horizon where it would shine its light on another part of the world. The sun's inevitability in a world so full of ever changing variations that ranged from the small to the not so small was assuring to some, especially a certain dark haired vagabond who had dried the last of his tears and merely sat crossed legged under the blazing fire over head that heated his skin like furnace but doing nothing to rekindle the buoyant life that had now ebbed into a frozen Iceland. Yet Zack still took comfort in the small constant of the rising and waning sun, taking solace in one of the few stubborn regularities of this ever changing world.

Zack eventually stood upright with some obvious effort and made his way back to camp, no longer knowing what to say or do when he met with his comrade, no longer really caring. They're relationship had been fractured, if not totally broken outright, and while if she was still present and they still designed to travel together, they could not simply put it behind them or stray away from the incident. The hard fact was they could no longer go back to what they once were; they were now allies by circumstance and nothing more.

Zack wasn't all too surprised to find Rose wasn't present at the camp, although the smoldering smoke of embers that indicated recent fire use meant she had once been, and not too long ago. She could of course mean to leave by sunset, perhaps gathering a few supplies before she perused her own agendas and perhaps that would be for the best, but she was a soul that would often seek her own solitude and so he couldn't yet be sure. Taking a seat next to the dying cinders which was somehow a fitting epitaph to their dying friendship, Zack cradled his knees to his chest and leaned on them with his face, slowly drifting off into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

Rose re-emerged some short time later, a couple of slain rabbits in hand. She hadn't finished her earlier meal and still felt famished, and she was not one to adventure without proper nourishment and energy if it could be helped. Zack didn't stir when she made her not so quiet entry and she wondered in typical survival fashion how easy it would have been for an enemy solider or monster, to sneak up on him and end him before he would have the chance to wake up. Milling around a while longer in preparation for cooking the meal, Zack finally did jolt awake when the fire flared upon Rose's ignition of the campfire once more.

Zack rolled back, the embers singing his face and hands. He looked at the dancing flames then at a standing Rose, first dumbfounded and then unreadable.

"You could have woken me up" he moaned wearily, rubbing his bloodshot eyes.

"I would have in time, but I thought I'd spare you as much sleep as could be afforded. You didn't get a moment of sleep last night and we can't afford to make slow ground."

Rose hadn't intended to use the word _we_, had been slipped out of habit, but now that it was said and in the open, there was nothing left to do but see how it would pan out. She would know soon at least, one way or another if she were adventuring with company or alone, as she had for thousands of years in the past.

Zack remained quiet for a time, as if in deep contemplation. "Are we to still travel together?"

"That is up to you" Rose said sternly. "It matters to me not either way."

Zack was reticent once more as his shroud of tiredness fell away and a mask of impassiveness once more covered his features. An air of uncomfortable silence fell the two of them, making Rose feel somewhat uneasy although she hid it well. Doing her best to ignore the awkward situation Rose focused her attention on food preparation.

"I'm going to train a little" Zack announced briskly, shooting up to collect his spear. Rose watched him as he faded into the open plains ahead, sighing deeply.

_This is going to be troublesome._

* * *

Zack heaved his new spear with visible effort, striking and lashing at imagined phantoms within his mind. Rose watched this from the cover of a small outcropping a good twenty meters away, shaded by jutting pines and flowering shrubs. Zack still flickered his eyes briefly to her general direction every so often Rose noticed, so there was a good chance he knew she was watching.

_He's becoming sharper in that regard _Rose thought absently, noting it wasn't so long ago she would have no problem concealing her presence from him no matter what the terrain. Not it seemed she was going out of her way to hide herself, or was she? It sure seemed like it.

_This is stupid. What has happened has happened, there is nothing to be done about it but move on._

After watching his solo sparring session, which given his recent injury was somehow impressive; Rose moved out from her shady incline and paced towards him. Once a few yards away, she started scrutinizing his style more closely.

This went on for a time longer, until Zack abruptly whirled towards her mid stroke, breathing deeply but visible exasperated.

"It's unnerving when you watch me like that" he complained heatedly. His still favoured his back a little, but if she were an enemy they may think it merely abnormal posture. But if the enemy were analytical then to the well trained eye it would be easy to notice well hidden weakness and thus exploit it.

"I'm watching you because your stance and strikes leave you far too open. Your movements are much to slow as well, you would be lucky to hit a hamstrung Giganto with that kind of technique."

Zack's annoyance burned into fury. "We can't all have perfect technique you know; I don't have the unfortunate advantage of eleven thousand years experience nor the fortune of perfect health. Plus, this glaive is much heavier than my old one."

"Stop acting like a child and take criticism properly would you? It'll be the difference between life and death, to any enemy who is remotely adept at dueling you'll be easily exposed. To compensate for the weight hold your leading hand towards the tip more so you have more freedom over your movements, you won't be able to reach as far but you'll have more speed and precision, a fair trade until you adapt with the extra mass. Also you're using your body too much and putting excess strain on your injured back, making you tire faster by wildly swinging like that. Use your legs and hips as a launching base to spring movements so you're not solely relying on your upper torso."

Zack grumbled a few incoherencies but practiced a few swings with the advised method. It looked to do him well; his movements and lashes became already more noticeably controlled.

"That's just a starting point, experiment a little to see what works. Also keep in mind the tip isn't the only weapon, the butt of your spear can be just as effect in the same way I can utilize a fast stunning blow with the pommel of my blade. It's always about being reactive. When you swing also try not to do so wildly, you should always be able to switch from offensive to defense in a split moment, to forsake defense in favour of aggression will leave you open to easy counter attacks."

"… Thanks" Zack expressed, although it appeared somehow reluctant.

"If you prefer I can keep such advice to myself and let you find out such lessons the hard way… again."

"No, no... It's been a long night. I do appreciate your input." Zack glanced ahead a final time then began to wander back towards the direction of camp. "I'm going to prepare for departure" he said as walked by her. Rose watched this with mild fascination but said nothing. He was curt, and probably would be for a while after all she did threaten to end his life, but he bounced back a little stronger than she expected he would. No wild tantrums or standoffs or threats to part ways, just a resigned acceptance, a person who realizes that regardless of his personal feelings their common goal transcends all else. 'For the greater good' as he likely saw it.

_I'm relieved, but not as relieved as I should be _an inner portion of her mind quickly understood. _But why? _

She couldn't put her finger on it. Even to its owner who has had eleven-thousand years to try and comprehend it, her mind was still a mystery.

Deciding dwelling on the matter would do her no good, she too began her journey back towards camp.

* * *

As it turned out they had an unexpected visitor waiting for them. Sitting around the dying campfire, feasting on the flesh of Rose's prey that she had left over intending to offer Zack, Amika glanced at the approaching Zack with mild amusement.

"Oh, alive after all I see" she said with an impish grin. "You're more resilient then I gave you credit."

Zack stiffen, his expression turning cagey. "I could say the same for you."

The dark assassin chuckled warmly. "Well here we both are, quite a nice reunion is it not?"

Zack, hardly in a mood for mind games or fallacies, only watched her with a stony glare. Her smile dropped at once.

"So, where is _your_ leader? Don't tell me she got herself killed."

"I'm right here" A calm voice sprung from behind. Rose approached the campsite with almost casual slowness. "As you well already well know. Quit the small talk, I know you've been stalking around since at least sunrise."

Amika's eyes turn catlike. "Not much gets past you hm?"

Zack glanced at Rose with quiet irritation, not liking being once more left out of the loop. Rose shot a glanced back at him as if to say _you should have realized that yourself. _

"Then this will allow me to get right to the point. As you well know my King has fallen, slain by the very same man you were designed to kill."

"Don't blame that on us" Rose said coldly.

"You misunderstand, I do not intent to place blame, I know that lies solely on me. But what I do want you to know is we share the same enemy now more than ever. To that end I wish to make a truce, a real truce, and as an act of sincerity I will reveal all the information I know, although most of it, if not all of it you will not like."

"I don't trust your information, never have. For all I know you're a spy for Wen now."

"I may be" Amika said coolly. "But I'm not, as you well know. I am loyal to Sandora and my King, which while Wen may have now proclaimed himself as such, is not a true heir to the throne. He is an enemy, one that must be killed for various reasons. But he is strong, has even stronger connections and allies, and we cannot do it alone, neither of us can. We need to band together, and even then it may not be enough."

"We'll take our chances" Rose said with icy roughness.

"Then you'll die, both of you will. You do not truly ken the monster you are perusing, but if you allow me to palaver, to speak, then you may get a better idea."

Zack, who didn't have the almost six sense intuition of Rose, had his own instincts and unexplainable hunches.

"I think we should let her humor us" Zack said softly.

Rose examined him closely then nodded. "Very well, but if I detected any falsities or ill meanings in your information or any attempt at feeble manipulation like last time I'll cut you down where you stand."

"Understood" the dark woman said unperturbed. She gestured the two to sit, which Zack did on the opposite side of the campfire while Rose waved it away with a mild wave of her hand. Instead she leaned upon one of the giant Oak's.

"I suppose I'll start by being forthright, I had every intention to kill the both of you had you managed to kill Wen, leaving Hytas with no enemies on either side. The confrontation between you and Wen was obviously orchestrated by my King, using me as the messenger and feeder of half-truths and inflated information. The perfect coup in other words, eliminating two birds with a single stone."

Zack looked angry at this but Rose didn't even raise an eyebrow. She had known this all along.

"But now that my King is dead, things have changed. My target is no longer you but a much larger and sinister one, so I'd request we work together seeing as our objectives lay one in the same."

"Comforting, this _really _makes me want to work with you" Zack said scoffed.

"It will once you learn the truth" she said with assurance. "Hytas shared with me a… few key bits of vital information about Wen. He was originally a trusted Serdian soldier and advisor during the last Sandorian invasion with the specific role of creating a force strong enough to take down Melbu Frahma should the Dragoon Knights fail." Amika paused, expecting some kind of interruption. When she got none she continued. "A fruitless plan perhaps, after all if seven knights of dragon descent failed what chance did we mere humans have? But alas we felt, as did Alert, that we would need a contingency plan none the less. Although only unremarkable humans, we were ready to defend our and if we had to. So to this end Wen was head of a kind of large resistance that was poised to intervene should your lot fail. As it turned out you did kill Frahma and the backup team was no longer needed.

"A foolish plan either way" Rose murmured with a shake of her head. Zack, while he himself had a million and one questions already remained silent, hoping at least some of them would be answered as the explanation progressed.

"Indeed, but we had to do something. In any event the result was a fairly large group of soldiers and men who were ready for battle but no longer had a battle to fight. Wen, being a tactical mastermind perhaps on the level of Hytas or even higher, quickly found a solution and offered it to the returning King of Basil who he had since then became somewhat close to. Convincing the tired King that his men would be the perfect asset in the rebuilt and subsequent stricken defense of Basil, Albert agreed, and the small faction that you had joined" the dark woman was pointing to Zack now. "Was a result of this."

Zack, who had never been completely let on about the origins of Wen's resistance, was amazed and shocked. Amazed that it had descended from such a good intentioned fallout plan, shocked that it was used for nothing more than sacrificial slaughter.

"The problem is that King Albert became ill, dangerously ill at a rapid rate. Without a means to cure him of his ailment and only slow it, his health quickly deteriorated beyond that which he could still control the throne.

Both Rose and Zack appeared alarmed at this new revelation. Amika appeared just as surprised that they had not already known such information.

"The fact the King's health has been in question since he returned from the battle in the Moon That Never Sets is almost public knowledge by this stage, how can either of you not know?"

Rose scoffed dismissively. "I've been far from within the loop of national affairs."

"Even in Fletz no such news passed through" Zack said disbelievingly. "Naturally Wen didn't address this issue on his list of discussable news."

The dark woman sighed deeply. "Then this next bit of news will be even tougher to bear. The affliction turned out fatal, Albert died on his bed trying to fight the fever."

Silence, a deep, heavy silence pervaded the announcement. Zack, who had a million questions running through his mind, suppressed them as best he could. Glancing sideways towards Rose he could see she was still persisting with her indomitable features of callousness, but with visible difficulty. A wave of pitiful sympathy replaced Zack's earlier despondency as he watched her in his peripheral bear the news with painful grief.

Amika waited a short time longer before she continued with a gentler tone. "This was all kept behind closed doors of course. If this bit of information went public then Wen, who was also present during his death along with the high ministers, feared an untimely attacking when they were at their weakest. Basil was well aware of the rising power and confidence of Sandora since my King Hytas took charge, and they did all they could to keep the news from reaching enemy ears."

"So Wen defected with that knowledge" Rose said in a voice that was disquietingly calm, but underneath Zack fancied he could detect an impending eruption of seething wrath.

"Yes, in time, but not before he managed to gain an important object: The Jade Dragoon Spirit. He gained it upon Albert's death, or so I was told."

Rose remained quiet, but Zack questioned the validity of the information. "How could you know this? Or how could Hytas know this, assuming that was where you got the knowledge from?"

The dark warrior smirked on one side of her face. "Although at first Wen was very generous with his support of the rising Hytas, it soon became apparent that his help would not come without payment. In essence he wanted ownership of the Hytas and consequently Sandora. That's when the struggle between Wen and Hytas began. Unfortunately we were at a disadvantage; we knew not who this entity was. So Hytas, using his many connections and feelers, tried to create a kind of profile for who Cloke could really be. In the end all we could gather was a summary on a man we thought was Cloke's superior. It wasn't until the murder of my King that both of us found out that Wen and Cloke were one in the same."

Rose studied Amika with open doubt it bordered on insolence. Amika however kept her gaze firm, never shying away for a moment.

"What else do you know about him?" Rose finally asked, having accepted her version of events. Zack let out a muted sigh, for a moment he was worried Rose would explode in a whirlwind of murderous fury.

"Nothing more on his past, but I do know a good deal about his future plans. You see he used Sandora in much the same way he used Basil, for information and to create destabilization. His goals aren't merely for him to use one country for control; he is perusing a goal far greater than that. I surmise that he wanted to confront Melbu Frahma not to only to defeat him but to acquire his power. Power, in essence, is what he is obsessed with. Individual, god-like supreme power. To that end he is amassing all the Dragoon Spirits in an effort to somehow harness all their powers together."

"So that's why he was after our Dragoon Spirits" Zack mused softly.

"Impossible" Rose said. "A spirit is bound to one individual and one only, it is impossible for a person to command the essence of more than one spirit at any given time."

"So we all thought, but if he is already collecting the spirits, then he must have, or at least thinks he has, a way to make such a feat possible. It all started when he first ordered Hytas to excavate the fallen piece of the Moon That Never Sets. There he found artifacts, as well as many scattered research papers documenting various experiments. It appears that while manipulating a host, Frahma intended to create an army of his own using the best traits of both races."

"Well that explains the freakish new specimens we've been facing" Zack said.

"It doesn't make sense" Rose spoke doubtfully. "What were such papers doing on the moon to begin with?"

Amika shrugged. "Perhaps Frahma was up there longer than you thought. It almost appeared like he had a makeshift lab within the moon. He had a long time to consider what he was going to do once he absorbed the power of the God of Destruction, so perhaps creating a new race was one of his primary concerns. In the end if Wen does have a way to merge the spirits, best bet would be he found some way to do it within Frahma's research. After all it was no secret he lured by the prospect of power, and Dragoon Knights wield much power indeed."

"If any, how many spirits has Wen managed to collect?" There was a well veiled plead in her question. By the look of Amika's sour face Zack didn't think she was about to deliver any good news.

"Two others are in his possession that we know of."

"…Who?" Now Rose couldn't hide the deep emotional implications that tangled itself within the outgoing words like a snake binding itself to one of the overhanging trees. The inference that Wen possessing the two orbs meant it was at the expense of the owners lives wasn't needed to be said, yet in hung over the exchange like an ominous fog.

"The young wingly and the older martial-artist."

Rose turned away, gazing into the skies above as she attempted to digest this ill-fated information. By the faint yet noticeable twitching of her mouth and cloudy haze that had obscured her eyes Zack didn't think she was making much success of keeping her stoic appearance. The dam had begun to spill and would soon flood, breaking the floodgates of her apathy with torrents of mournful despair. Zack, who had at some point during his earlier misery had wished she would fell his pain, but now that it had come to pass, had come to pass in a greater scale then even he cared to wish, he felt somehow guilty despite knowing his empty hope during one of his lowest moments in his life had nothing to do with what had eventuated. His initial reaction was to place a consoling hand on her shoulder, but fought back the idea immediately. Like an animal that had been wounded she was more likely to lash out than accept any sentiments of condolence, especially physical ones. As hard as it was for him he just had to let it be, there was nothing he could do or say that would help her weather this emotional storm.

"And of the others?" Her voice was so raw with uncontainable anguish that if he had not seen her lips move he would never believed they had come from the woman he was looking at. Even at the best of times she had been a pillar of absolution, never wavering in resolve or duty, never showing more than the faintest of sensitivity. Until now given the unfolding events of the previous morning Zack had been convinced she was essentially desolate of human empathy. What he saw now was very much to the contrary, and it scared him in a way that was startling.

Amika glanced away before responding. "Shana was also killed in the invasion whilst alongside her fiancée Dart. As for Dart himself, he was captured but believed to have not been killed."

Rose's fist was hammered down onto one of the low roots, her face downward and unreadable.

"We're not sure why he was spared, although we believe as far as our basic knowledge or dragons go that due to the fact the Dart was in possession of the unique Divine Dragoon Spirit, perhaps he needs him alive if he wishes to harness it's power. All we know is that he stressed the importance of keeping Dart alive and killing the rest."

"…likely because he'll need the spirits in a dormant state, which they recede to when not currently in possession of their user." Rose appeared misleadingly calm, but Zack could sense something else entirely underneath. She moved off her leaning position on the barky Oak and drew her blade, resting the tip on the base of Amika's dark neck where it connected to the shoulder.

"Regardless of your apparent will to have a truce if what you say is true then being a part of the military that slaughtered my friends, I'll have you and every one of those soldiers not fortunate enough to be dealt a swift death by Wen's exhibit responsible." Rose was glaring at her with cold fury now, her eyes somehow demonic in quality. Amika remained calm, although Zack spotted her left hand slowly reaching for one of the dangling weapons on her hip. Zack took this as a queue to quickly find a way to diffuse the situation.

"Rose killing her won't help" Zack implored softly.

"Shut up" she snarled without taking her eyes off her prey. "I'm not going to let her simply walk away after telling me my friends were butchered."

"I'd listen to your friend" Amika warned. "You need me whether you like it or not. If it's any consolation I had no direct influence in the demise of your comrades."

"Don't mock me" Rose fumed furiously. "Even if you didn't kill them yourself you would have if ordered to. Don't piss down my back and tell me it's raining, your hands are as dirty as the ones who dealt the killing blow."

Zack did his second bold move for the day and skirted in between Rose and the dark woman, acting as a separating wall while knocking her rapier away. Rose glowered at him infuriated.

"Do you want to get hurt as well?"

"Sit" he commanded with an authority he didn't usually exhibit. Amika, while unquestionably brave, was not stupid. She took this time to retreat a small distance.

"He's at Hellena Prison" she said, crossing her arms across her chest. On the surface it looked like a relaxed posture, but by the way her folded hands now lingered close to both of her daggers Zack thought it a very calculated move. She still expected trouble.

The exotic warrior's words had a profound effect on Rose's erupting anger. Her rigid stance loosened a fraction as she contemplated this new information.

"Why would he not be held in the dungeon?" Rose asked, her rage apparently evaporating as fast as water within a fiery desert.

"Perhaps he didn't trust us with his imprisonment? We're not really sure, all we know is as soon as he was captured Wen made sure to have him incarcerated within the most defendable prison…" Amika trailed off when she realized Rose was no longer listening. She was already moving about the camp, gathering what meager supplies she had.

"Rose…" Zack began, knowing exactly what was on her mind.

"Looks like we don't need to waste any more time deliberating over our next move."

"You'll doom us all if that is your plan of action" Amika said reproachfully. Rose appeared not to listen. Sighing deeply, she turned her attention from the woman whose mind had become clouded by a fog of volatility and ill judgment to her partner. "You" she said, stalking towards the dumbfounded Zack. "You see how foolhardy this escapade would be right? You think Wen's plan are just going to wait while you run off to save a man who's likely the bait in a well placed trap? Now that he has Serdio and Tiberoa in his grasp where next do you think he'll strike?"

Zack remained silent, not entirely sure the answer she wanted from him. When he couldn't give her the answer she expected she grew exasperated.

"_Mille Seseau!_ It's one of the last unconquered bastions of Endiness and it also shelters the Sacred Sister currently in possession of one of the few Dragoon Spirits he has left to capture."

Alarmed, Zack turned his attention to Rose who had paused in her stockpiling.

"You're a logical woman by nature, I know that. It shouldn't need to be said that defending Deningrad takes precedence over your friend's liberation."

"Isn't leaving the Divine Dragoon Spirit in his possession just as dangerous?"

"He's not going to be able to put his plans into motion until he has all the Dragoon Spirits, so he should be fine until that happens."

Rose was uncharacteristically able to rebut.

"Try and think off all the paltry excuses you wish, but what is important is trying to stop Wen from gaining control of the last main province. If he does then all is lost, your friend's life as well."

"… I'll go to Mille Seseau and do my best to hold the fort down there, or at least alert them to a possible attack."

Both Rose and Amika eyed Zack wearily.

"That way we're knockin' two birds down with one stone, hurting him in two places instead of one. If we stopped him from gaining the Dragoon Spirit in Deningrad as well as take the Divine Spirit away, then wouldn't that _really_ throw a spanner in his well laid plans?" He was smiling now, enjoy the prospect of giving a little back after enduring the both physical and emotional backstab.

Even Rose was grinning. "For the first time I think a sensible idea has come from that brain of yours."

Amika didn't appear too convinced. Frowning, she said "I don't think it's a good one at all."

"What's the problem in it?" Zack wondered unhappily.

"Together you are a threat, but divided you are both easily subdued. Especially you" she nodded towards Zack. "If one or both of you fail all you are doing is offering him the spheres of power he so desperately seeks, playing directly in his hands." She stopped to consider a moment before continuing. "However that does give me an idea, although this one will require trust on both of your parts."

The idea of trust didn't sit well with either of them, particularly Rose.

"You were only to be our executioners only twenty four hours ago, now you wish us to trust you?"

Amika glanced at Rose as if what she had just said was incredibly unbecoming. "Situations change, as do our objectives and who we align ourselves with. Nothing is static in this world; I thought you of all people would understand this."

"That's precisely why I _don't_ trust you. At the drop of a hat you'd as quickly put a dagger in my back if the 'situation changed' as you so nicely put it. All we are is a means to an end, so stop acting like you're after any real alliance."

"Perhaps, but our goals are the same, and will be until Wen is dead or dying painfully, so how about we worry about alliances after that has come to pass? It's help to you no matter what form it comes in so why question it?"

"I think she's right Rose" Zack said thoughtfully. "I don't like her anymore than you do, but if you put it all aside for a moment and actually come to terms with the fact we're vastly outnumbered and out-resourced, then we're only hurting ourselves by declining what assistance we can get."

"The man speaks true" Amika agreed. "If, once Wen is killed you wish to settle up our dispute, then I'll be more than happy. Until then, let us look forward to what must be done."

"… What was your plan then?"

"You both go to Deningrad, especially you Rose. Your reputation will be needed if you're to stir the region into preparing for an invasion, as well as warning the Sacred Sister about what danger she now faces while I go to Hellena and try and bust out your comrade. I'm a master in espionage and subterfuge, so the task will suit me just fine. This plan also had the added bonus of if I fail; Wen doesn't gain anything but another dead body out of it."

There was another period of pensive silence. Zack didn't have to mull it over much at all, he could see clear cut her idea was the reasonable one. But Rose, who had the added weight of her emotional connection to Dart as well as having to put her trust in a woman who worked for the same team that eliminated three of her companions. If he was in her shoes, Zack didn't think he'd be able agree with her plan no matter how right the decision was.

But in the end, despite Rose being caught in a rare hurricane of perturbed sentiments she had tried so hard not to succumb to in her life, her innate practicality won out as it always did. When Rose announced with a calm assurance that it was the best plan of action, Zack couldn't help but admire the way she could put all else aside in favour for what was correct.

_Just what keeps her going in situations like this? _He wondered. But he already knew the answer. Because she had to. Giving up or retreating was simply not an option for her, never has been and never will be. He felt weak and feeble beside her as he recollected he earlier outburst and made a solemn promise to himself. _I will get stronger. I will stop being weak of both mind and heart. _

"That only leaves the problem of getting to Deningrad. Sandora have both ports in Serdio and Tiberoa under their control, so unless you have your own ship stashed away somewhere you won't be able to access it by sea."

Rose considered Amika's predicament carefully. "There may be an alternative, but it'll require going through the Valley of Corrupted Gravity."

"That's quite the distance away…" Amika mused. "If Wen is already on the war path…"

"Even if he is, it'll take some time to re-gather his forces and send them across the sea. In any event I can't think of an alternative, if we can't venture by sea I'll find my own transport."

"I don't see how venturing to the Valley of Corrupted Gravity could help you gain passage to Mille Seseau but…"

"Just as I have to trust you, you have to trust me. We'll get there as fast as we can to give Wen a nice surprise if he plans of invading Deningrad. In the meantime, unless there is any other news to share I suggest we begin our journeys."

"Very well" she agreed. "If I succeed I'll meet you in Deningrad. In the meantime watch each other's back and try not to get yourselves killed."

"Just make sure you yourself get back. We have a score to settle, and I'll be most disappointed if someone else kills you before I do."

While it would have been a nice touch under other circumstances, Zack knew by the look of her stern features Rose made the claim with every intention to back it up. She really planned on killing the woman at one point or another. Amika merely smiled, as if she took some perverse pleasure in Rose's promise.

"Later then" she said as she began to exit the clearing.

"Hey wait!" Zack hollered as she turned her back. The woman turned, regarding him evenly.

"What's your name?"

She paused a moment, as if debating whether or not so share such personal details.

"Amika" she finally answered. Then she turned her back a final time and she was gone, leaving Rose and Zack to mull over the challenges that now lie ahead.


	16. Chapter 16: Making the Distance

**Chapter 16: Making the Distance**

Rose and Zack headed due north and a little to the west as Amika branched off directly west towards Hellena, passing over the dividing Sandorian mountain Range Eldrilen's Belt, supposedly named after an ancient giant that sundered the dividing folds that began at the south of Sandora and split towards the north right through the middle of the province, cumulating towards the northern border as it melted into the realm of the active Volcano Villude. In times past, as Rose could testify it had been a perilous journey to voyage from one side of the large expanse of the towering mountain valley to the other, but now, aided with a technologically advancing civilization, much safer passage had been paved in the form of obvious paths and reinforced bridges. Amika would have no real problem passing the Belt; her primary concern would be evading the native monsters that had taken up residence, preying on unwary travellers.

Rose and Zack unfortunately had a much longer journey in front of them and as such could ill afford to dawdle. They travelled a good distance from the main roads so as not to be spotted by any roaming patrols or highway bandits but not too far inland to attract the unwanted attention of the swamp creatures that were had taken the deep marshlands as their dwelling.

Zack however struggled with the endless, face pace of Rose's strides that never seemed to wane her incredible stamina. Zack laboured to keep up with Rose's furious tempo under the best of circumstances, but weighed down by the added factor of his back still recovering, it was an impossible swiftness to continue with without frequent rest breaks. This irritated Rose immensely, who wasn't happy with the ground they were currently covering.

"We should have got a horse of some kind" Zack complained tiredly. They had been moving for the better part of half a day, edging closer to two thirds judging by the way the sun was closing in on the darkening horizon. They had covered a good fifteen miles Rose supposed, perhaps a little more, but it was slower than she would have liked. Twenty or twenty five would have been a better accomplishment and she probably could have reached it if she wasn't slowed by a comparatively slower companion.

"Last I checked horse merchants don't brave the open country roads" Rose responded dryly.

Groaning, Zack signalled for another breather.

"Again?" Rose asked, no longer able to silence her aggravation. She had understood Zack was hampered by an injury and would affect his movements to an extent, but this went beyond mere injury. It was his endurance that was holding him back or lack of in regards to ceaseless travelling on foot.

Zack fell to the grassy earth below, wiping a forearm over his burning and wet brow. Rose scanned the area quickly for anything that would take advantage of their stationary position, but could to her eyes find none. Only endless grassland and marshes spanned in every direction.

Rose remained vertical, opting not to rest her lower body. Zack glanced up at Rose while waving a fanning hand across his perspiring face.

"Do you not sweat?" He questioned, using his hand to shield his face and eyes from the rays of the afternoon heat. "You've power-walk like a person who has no limit on their stamina and yet you've barely broke a sweat while I sit here in a pool of my own dampness. It's unnatural I tell you."

Rose closed her eyes and shook her head. "Mindless babble again?"

Zack smiled at her, his eyes gleaming under his shading hand. He had returned to his usual buoyancy as Rose found out, much to her annoyance. For a man who was on the verge of breaking down indefinitely he had an uncanny way of bouncing back to his natural form, filling her ears with useless comments and questions about equally useless irrelevancies.

"Not much else to do is there?" Zack rebutted.

"Just because we have the opportunity to talk, doesn't mean we always _have_ to" Rose replied sharply.

"You really hate socializing don't you?"

Rose shook her head. "No, I just don't want to waste the energy I need on mindless dribble. If you spoke about something relevant to our situation, then perhaps it'd be worthwhile."

Zack shrugged. "You think too much. At times like this, you just gotta enjoy the peace."

Rose wondered if perhaps he had reverted to this incessant chattering as a form of withdrawn defence. Even if it was the case, it was testing the limits of her patience. "You've had your rest, lets continue on" she urged, walking forward.

"Hey, wait up!' Zack shouted from behind, springing to his feet. "You really need to learn patience" Zack commented one he caught up to her, walking side by side rather than behind as he had been doing up until now. Rose abruptly stopped during mid stride, eyes flashing as she scanning the area intently. Zack noticed the tensing of her posture instantly.

"What is it?" Zack asked in a low voice, attempting to determine any immediate danger.

Rose drew out her rapier and held it in front of her with one hand, simultaneously shifting her left leg back, putting a good deal of her weight behind it as customary to her battle stance "Trouble" she warned, reading herself for what was to come.

* * *

Amika trekked the Eastern region of Sandora with contrasting openness, opting to travel the main road which was often a route for traders and wondering merchants. The makeshift freeway, a large dirt path that was easily the width of several large carriages abreast, was bereft of the surrounding deep grass and entangling marshes, making travelling by both horse and foot much easier. Due to the steady amount of traffic the Old Road saw this close to the central hub (and an old road it certainly was, it was here well before her time and before Hytas' by his accounts) even roaming monsters appeared hesitant to encroach, only the boldest or most desperate doing so. As much as she liked to linger in the shadows out of public view, her fastest route was the most straightforward one. In any event it was still her home land; she did not see it necessary to conceal herself from friendly eyes, even if it did run the risk of exposure. That would obviously change as she drew closer to Hellena and ventured across the part of Eldrilen's Belt where it was its narrowest, but for now, passing small communities and countrymen where the Sandorian insignia emblemized proudly on her dark chest piece was immediately recognized and well regarded, she felt no need to hide. She was amongst her own now and until news spread about what had taken place within those haunting castle walls, to these folk she was nothing more than another soldier fighting the good battle.

But this didn't mean she wasn't diligent however. Sandora held a tight network, a well woven web of sending and receiving communications that was built on a firm hierarchy where the King or Queen always sat at the peak. Everything from the miniscule to the imperative was relayed to the King or Queen to re-relay at his or discretion. Currently Wen was now occupying the peak position, and as such had a well forged net of incoming and outgoing information at his disposal. The network would of course be somewhat hindered with recent events, but as soon as Wen seized total control of Kazas which would take a couple of days at most, the network would be fully functional under his command, forcing her to go into hiding. As outraged and perhaps even defiant as some of the citizens may be with the development, there will always be those who would seize on such an opportunity, especially if her names goes on the handsomely rewarded wanted list. But that was later, for now she would enjoy the rural sights of the country she had come to call home for what could be her final time. She would later reflect when everything had taken a turn for the worst that she was glad she did. The one thing she loved more than her late King was her home, and she was always prepared to die to defend it.

So lost in these thoughts was she that she was caught uncharacteristically by surprise. So caught off guard in fact that she had to suppress a shrill cry of bewilderment as a man hailed her from atop a horse carting a rickety wooden caravan she should have heard a quarter of a mile away.

"Greetings young lass" he said warmly, his worn looking face partially concealed behind the wide brim of his straw hat.

"And hail to you to sir" she responded as she re-gathered her wits. The stocky man bellowed gales of unabashed laughter at her greeting. His stocky frame shook from beneath his maroon and olive poncho that fell below his rugged blue pants.

"How very noble of you to greet me as such. Not enough respect about these roads if you ask me, usually I just get hopeful looks for gracious charity or threatened at knife or bow point. I'm glad you turned out to be neither."

"'Tis true enough, these roads are dangerous to be sure" Amika said amiably enough as she glanced off towards the splitting cleft that laid before her.

"Can I interest ye in any of me wares? Only basic food, water and medical herbs, but best be prepared when venturing through roads as dangerous as these eh? For your polite greetin' I'll even give ye a small discount." His grin widened under his bushy beard, sensing a potential customer.

Amika shook her head, softening her refusal with a smile. "Nay kind merchant, I'll have to respectfully decline such a kind offer. But.." Amika paused once more to look off into the distance. "Where will your route be taking you?"

The merchant appeared abashed by her question. "Through yonder valley and up through the eastern coasts, moving north until I hit the border then veering toward Seles." The merchant paused. "With the lack of brave traders these days the small towns not close to the capital are becoming resource starved, so I sell what wears I can as I make me way to Seles where I do the bulk of me business." Another smile. "Quite a bit of coin to be made with a rebuilding town."

Amika nodded in understanding, wondering if on some level it was a kind of act of reparation. It was, after all, Sandora soldiers that razed the small forest town when the first Serdian war broke out. "Then rather than buy your wares how about I make you a counter offer?"

The merchant looked stunned for a second time.

"You let me travel with you as far as the start of the east coast past the Belt and in return you'll get a bit of coin as well as guaranteed protection from any thieves or monsters."

The merchant's expression turned somehow shrewd, no longer appearing the foolishly generous trader. Amika thought he would refuse her offer or at least ask why as he stared at her with unreadable eyes, but his stern gaze crumbled into an accepting kindness.

"Deal!" he agreed with a grin. "Hop on back, just mind me wares If you'd be kind." Amika thanked him, bowed slightly, then moved to the back of the wooden cart. Large, blanketing cloth had been draped around most of the cart save for a gap at the very back, offering both protection from the heat as well as protection from any unwanted onlookers. Pleased at the prospect of being able to travel in relative comfort, Amika thanked the male merchant once again from within the cart.

"The pleasures all mine" he assured as he ushered his horse onwards. "It'll be nice to have some company as well; can get mighty boring on your own. Well, you know, when you're not warding off monsters or thugs or trying to scoot across thin chasms. Oh, names Earl by the way!."

Amika thought about using an alias, but disregarded the idea. She liked him, despite his simple dialect he was candid and engaging, reminding her that it was because of folks like this she had taken to the sword to begin with.

"Amika, nice to meet you."

"Nice to have a lieutenant on board, makes me feel a little more at ease" Earl said with a laugh.

"You know of me?" Amika questioned a little suspiciously. It was her business _not _to be known after all.

"Nay lass, Just noticed your uniform is all."

Amika didn't respond but found herself a little suspicious. As open and engaging as this man was, she couldn't help but wonder if he was more than he appeared to be.

* * *

Something in the distance from the meadows beyond glinted like a burning star before it shifted into something far more dangerous as the object propelled towards their located. Rose had enough time to bark an order to move, which Zack did before the words left her mouth as he too could see the burning pyre rocketing right for them. Rose used her lean but powerful legs to spring her body laterally to the right, avoiding the path of what she identified as a smouldering ball of destructive fire, while Zack did likewise, throwing his body left, although unlike Rose's instinctive grace he crashed on his back hard, his body sending spasms of liquid hot pain up his spine.

The fireball did not however combust as Rose expect it would. It shot past the two, slowed to an idle hover, then accelerated back towards them, homing in on a momentarily vulnerable Zack who was still in the process of getting back to his feet. Zack saw this with a quick glance over his shoulder, but as he tried to will his body into a quick movement it buckled instead, immobilizing him. Hunch over on his knees writhing in pain, Zack was unable to move out of the flaming boulder's trajectory.

Rose moved towards him, preparing to fight magic with her own in an attempt to cancel it out (although the knowledge that it could have instead intensified the impact of the explosion thus putting him at greater risk occurred to her a time later when she conceded to herself she had foolishly allowed herself succumb to panic) but Zack warned her to keep her distance. Moments before the large sphere of burning death struck him, she noticed a pillar of fire of a much stronger intensity engulf him, and at once understood what he had planned to do.

The resulting shockwave from the impact was strong enough to send her crashing to the ground, disorientated as her hands, legs and one side of her face seared with light burns. The disorientation lasted a while longer as both her sense of hearing and sight took a few crucial seconds to recalibrate once again, in her own head it was like a volcano had exploded, but once it did she spotted Zack in same place still kneeling, but otherwise uninjured, protected by his Dragoon's Armour's affinity to fire.

Now sure her comrade would be okay her mind set upon the task of indentifying their ambusher. She couldn't see him or her but could sense them in the distance some twenty yards in the distance, likely covered behind a small outcropping of solidified volcanic rocks. Rose got to her feed and made a dash towards the source.

Her skin felt like it had just been cooked on a campfire, but she was able to put the inconsequential pain in the back of her mind for the moment. Another projection of volatile energy propelled towards her as she closed the distance, but she was already prepared. Cocking her hand back as if ready to throw something, Rose hurled a ball of dark chaotic energy of her own. When the two forces collided it created a spectacular flare of black and orange, but more importantly it also for the meantime masked her presence. If she was lucky her opponent would assume she had been at the very least engulfed in the blast.

Once she did emerge from the blanket of coloured smoke she was only a couple of yards from the outcropping. She could clearly identify her target now, a male wingly who was levitating slightly, cloudy eyes under platinum hair full of battle lust, adorned in an extravagant gown typical to the winglies in their home forest, their last true remaining stronghold.

But his eyes were not fixed on her but something above, one of his hands turned skyward palm up as more energy kinetic energy began to coalesce. Rose didn't need to look to know it was Zack, who had now obviously taken to the sky that had gotten the lonesome wingly's attention. Before the adversary could infuse enough magic power to create a third volley Rose closed the remaining distance with cat like agility, stepping atop the charcoal rocks like monkey would jump from branch to branch. Pouncing upon her unwary prey, Rose used the force of her body to knock the stranger down, her blade pressing against his exposed throat as the unfinished spell didn't turn unstable and detonate but merely fizzed out of existence, much to Rose's relief. Looming atop the wingly's prone body, pinning him down with her weight as well as her blade; Rose increased the pressure slightly before asking: "Are you one of the winglies of from the Forest of Winglies?"

Rose noticed immediately that unlike the hybrid counterparts they had battled earlier, this one had a very visible sense of awareness along with magic far potent.

Eyes submerged in madness greeted her with open defiance, his thin mouth pulled back into a snarl revealing canine like teeth. Rose pressed the blade harder, cutting the skin on his throat ever so slightly.

"Tell me why you attacked me or you'll die right here."

Zack descended from behind, looking on warily from a small distance away. His body changed back as soon as his feet touched the ground.

"Our time to reclaim the land your parasitic kind stole from us so long ago has finally come, _algalam._"

This response surprised Rose, but she displayed it not at all.

"A sudden insurgence? But why? And why attack us?"

The wingly in question however was not willing to take part is Rose's question and answer session. Laughing wickedly, this wingly had apparently only been stalling for time. His body began to take on an ethereal quality, as if he was fading in and out of existence.

"I'll kill you before you get a spell off" Rose cautioned, but the wingly listened not at all.

"Then you best kill me fast, algalm."

Rose was ready to end him right there, but the familiar sensation of gathering energy passed through her body as well through their link of direct contact.

_He means to teleport!_

"Zack! Grab a hold of him!" Rose growled. Zack appeared hesitant at making contact with something that was somehow turning translucent."

"_Now!" _she roared and he extended a hand, grabbing one of the wingly's outstretched arms. All three of them were then encased in an emerald sphere and lifted high into the air before being shot northward an insurmountable distance like a sling shot.

* * *

As if a gust of wind that had come and somehow in the process pushed out the air in her lungs, Rose dropped to a comparatively harder surface than the one she had been leaning on with a grunt of great effort, her chest working hard to replace the oxygen she felt she was lacking. Her field of vision darkened, as if her body was teetering between conscious and unconsciousness, but after inhaling a few gasps of air the vertigo passed, leaving her with a whole new scenery to acquaint herself with.

A quick glance sideways showed her that Zack wasn't much better off. Shifting from a laying position to an upright one with a sluggishness that mirrored hers, Rose became faintly aware of the change in not only the barren soil or surrounding rocky peaks but the atmosphere itself. It was like reallocating to a new land. Upon a second and closer inspection, that change was not only thought but apparent.

_We're in…Tiberoa._

Their wingly associate on the other hand appeared not to suffer from the same draining lethargy that she and Zack did. Staggering to his feet and then taking to the skies by his twin jets of semi-transparent energy that spurred from the top of his back like a stream of anti-gravity that pushed instead of pulled, the assailant fled before he was put to the sword a second time.

"Do we try and chase him?" Zack questioned, still slow to get to his feet. Rose meantime had already done so but studied Zack who not only sounded utterly fatigued looked it, his face strained and somehow unfocused.

"I could probably catch him if I took flight after him, but you are in no shape to do anything of the sort."

Zack rose to his feet as if the act somehow reduced credibility to her claim. "I can still go, don't worry. What if he comes back and attacks?"

Rose pondered this for a time then shook her head. "I don't think he will, not after he came so close to losing his life. He hoped to take us by surprise, but now that we're diligent, certainly more so then before his attempted ambush, I think he'll try a new angle if he wishes to still battle."

"We have to sleep sometime..." Zack said but his attention was now captured by the change in environs as well. "What in the world happened? I touched him, then got the feeling of being closed in a tiny ball before the wind got knocked out of me so hard and fast I was sure something as large as an ox had fallen on top of me."... And we look like we're in Tiberoian country... but that's impossible!"

"We were teleported here by the wingly. They have that power you see, although long since their much more powerful ancestors have they been able to travel over such a distance. Judging by the lack of our own energy, I'd say the spell borrowed off our own reservoirs as well as the wingly's."

"That's not just _some _distance, that's a good week at least of walking! Depending on where exactly we are we must have travelled hundreds of miles!"

"Be thankful it was in the direction we need to go and not further away. This is a rare showing of fortune on our behalf, in my experience this sort of luck is a rare occurrence, so let us be thankful rather than complain."

"But...this is ludicrous! I don't know about you but there is something warped about travelling such a distance in the blink of an eye. It's unnatural even."

"It's the wingly way. Their old cities, Kadessa, Zenebatos, Mayfil and Aglis all had technology that allowed instant teleportation. To them it is the norm, and those who still have a strong grasp to magic can use such an ability at will."

Zack appeared to have trouble adjusting to such a concept. "It's just...madness."

"Perhaps, but what we're better of trying to figure out is where exactly in Tiberoa we currently are."

"I think I know" Zack said, turning a full three hundred and sixty degrees to devour the what appeared to Rose as nothing more than endless cliffs and seared earth. "Can you hear that? The faint sound of the sea?"

Rose paused a moment to concentrate. She thought she did.

"We're pretty close to the sea, close enough that I can almost _taste _it." He was pointing towards a side of rock face that looked to dip as if to suddenly end. "This is the only shore in Tiberoa besides the ports in Fletz and Donau, the rest of the continent is barricaded by towering cliffs that make invasion by sea virtually impossible." He pivoted around one hundred and eighty degrees. "The only known small lagoon that is level with the water is just south-west of Fletz that loops the outer arc of the Barrens."

"Are you sure?"

"Not entirely, but we sound too close to the water to be atop the many high-reaching rock walls, so I'm fairly sure."

"Then heading in the opposite direction will take us into the Barrens" Rose said thoughtfully. They had travelled a great distance indeed, greater than even she had expected. If all went well they could be in the Valley of Corrupted Gravity within two or three days.

"We would perhaps be better skirting to the west as it bends back around to the western edge of the Barrens" Zack suggested. " "Would be less of a chance of ambushes by soldiers and monsters alike, heading due north from here would still take us to an area of the Barrens close enough to Fletz to perhaps be patrolled or guarded. Plus, judging the direction the wingly took off, I'd say he was headed straight there."

Rose was sceptical, but relented to his reasoning. She would know soon enough if his navigation was wrong, and, after all he did know the area a great deal better than her. Rose lowered her eyes, considering a final time as she surveying the dusty, deep copper huge of the cracked earth that made the continent famous for its bleak, desert wilderness, then looked forward towards the area Zack suggest they follow.

"Then let us linger no longer."

"A couple more minutes, if you would" Zack said, still struggling to remain upright. "The transformation was rather taxing."

Rose understood. "You're making progress in mastering your gift, until now you had much trouble summoning the power to morph on will."

Zack let out a dry chuckle. "Not too much will involved, if I didn't I'd have been as good as cooked."

Rose had nothing to say to this, and so the duo shared a brief silence before Zack asked a question that had been on his mind.

"He referred to you an…" Zack paused a moment, fumbling with the word. "Aglum, or aldagam it sounded like. It was so laden in dialect I can't quite make it out."

"Al-ga-lam" Rose corrected, still gazing at the ever distant wastelands. "It's a word from the Old Language as it came to be called by historians. Winglies once had their own form of communication much different from our own, although many theories suggest ours came from a simplified adoption of theirs. It's basically a lost language that most of the newer generation of winglies are unfamiliar with save for a few sparse phases and words. 'Algalam' roughly translates to human, although with a disdainful connotation which closer resembles a thrall, which in those times were all we were. It's been years since I've heard a word from the Old Language…"

"They have such power... to be able to throw magic so strong on top of teleport and still have the strength to fly away... it makes the winglies Wen created appear weak by comparison."

"They are no more than stronger humans, possessing only a fraction of the power that true winglies hold."

"Wait a minute" Zack said in alarm. "I remember Amika telling me when I was imprisoned that Wen had a way to create a far superior breed of super solider. Ones that had the awareness of a human but also unbendable loyalty to assure he had total control."

Rose was anxious about this latest development he had neglected to mention earlier. "If that's true then we're in a whole lot more trouble."

"Especially if we have real winglies gunning for us as well. What is their problem, talking about some kind of uprising?"

Rose shrugged. "I can't say. I suspect much but know nothing, so until I do learn more we'll just have to remain cautious. Our goal still remains the same: Get to Deningrad."

"What do you suspect then?"

"I suspect that we've spent too long talking and not enough time making ground. Come; let us make some more distance before sunset."

With a sigh Zack followed Rose who as she so often did, led the way towards the beginning of what would be a much longer conflict then either of them could have ever imagined.


	17. Chapter 17: Those Who Fight On

**Chapter 17: Those Who Fight On**

It took Rose and Zack the better part of three days to trek the final distance between the Barrens and towering gate that loomed before the Valley of Corrupted Gravity like a haunting omen. The journey between was fairly monotonous by and large and through Zack's surprisingly accurate navigation they were able to skirt around any patrolling soldiers as well as any large dens where myriads of creatures might inhabit, waiting to come to life at the prospect of a possible meal. But such dangers were few and far between so for the most part they were lost in their own thoughts when not engaging the not uncommon but often shot lived conversations with each other which mostly circled around future outcomes of their adventure assuming they made it to their destination in the first place.

Rose had wondered on more than one occasion the impact their earlier clash would have on their rapport. On the surface it appeared fine, better than she had hoped, but it didn't take much probing to realise on a deeper level it wasn't a well as it seemed. There were small changes at first, changes like how instead of talking about anything remotely personal (which he did all too often prior, things about his home, his jobs, his childhood, a million other things she was just as uninterested in hearing so she found this altercation a good one) he bombarded her with questions about their journey. What would they do when they got to Deningrad? What about Wen? What about his army? Along with a multitude of other questions she could not yet answer. His babble would never stop she supposed, but the shift in what he spoke about when they spent long days journeying was so stark in contrast that it was almost jarring. Another change was he also went out of his way to try and prove he didn't need her assistance in anything no matter how small or large. She wondered if that was the cause of why he refused her help during the encounter with the wingly earlier when it looked probable he would be blown apart.

But the most radical change was of a night when they turned in after an evening of relentless traversing. Most times he barely slept, either sat around a dying campfire or fixated himself with the stars wearing a face that looked so mournful, desperate and lonely it became quickly evident that in front of her he was only displaying a feeble mask of feigned enthusiasm. The face she saw through slitted eyes when sleep had not yet claimed her or had been pulled away was of was one so haunting she couldn't help but feel somehow remorseful, responsible even. It was like he was being eaten away from the inside out.

_It was for his own good _she tried to convince. _He can't rely on you or anyone, not in situations like this. _After all did she have anyone to rely on when the burden to kill the Moon Child every one hundred and eight years fell upon her? She had felt lonely and even desperate, especially early on when the loss of her friends hit her the hardest, but never did she weaver, never did she let the brooding feelings of helplessness stop her from doing what must always be done.

_His still soft, but he's slowly hardening, he'll have to. _Yet as rational as her reasons were, it didn't quite extinguish the feelings of sympathetic understanding that stabbed her when she looked into a face that was a frightening reflection of her own when she was much younger and much more vulnerable.

"I can feel the distortion even from here" Zack said upon arriving in front of the large, cooper gate that towered as high as the surrounding cliffs that funnelled them into the rising gorge, which seemed to pierce the sky. The colossal dual hinged gate, perhaps one of the biggest if not the biggest in Endiness was controlled by an array of rotating cogs and pulleys from a basic control panel to the right where a guard usually stood to stop people from venturing fourth without permission from the King. The gate still remained ajar however from her and Dart's group's last expedition into the area, almost as if to somehow welcome them into the valley for another time.

"Are you prepared?" Rose asked, although it was a redundant question. One could not truly prepare themself for their first visit to such an abnormal landscape.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Zack responded, unaware of how much a strain the twisting gravity can put on a body not attuned to it. Everything was distorted, and as a result the mere act of moving and breathing, while under normal circumstances second nature, can be suddenly become an almost impossible struggle. He would learn soon enough however.

"Then follow me and stay close."

Zack looked at her questioningly a few moments, then followed as she pushed past the open gates into a land unlike he had ever witnessed or felt before.

Before them now lay a path of obscurity in the form of various twisting and rotating rock plateaus that acted as platforms to cross as they ventured higher up the valley. Like the name of the valley suggest, all the platforms that once made up a complete jutting gorge was now sundered by the force of unimaginable power resulting in scattered chunks of varying landmasses that hovered as if gravity didn't exist. In some cases it was the opposite, floating rocky debris, some as small as stones, others as large as boulders drifted from plateau to plateau not up to down but down to up. From where they stood on the unstable base several small and larger platforms spread out in front of them in both direction, but all led towards the central landmass at the back where everything else seemed to gravitate towards, like the planets in the solar system would a sun. This land mass was huge, so huge in fact that it spiralled up towards the grey and black creased sky. But it was also odd, as with everything else in this distorted vale. The rocky leviathan, or at least it may have once been, seemed to be missing a middle piece that connected the two separate coiling shards of earth that resembled a kind of jutting V. Rose of course saw it for what it really was, but to Zack, who was unaware that what had once dwelt, petrified in heart of the apex was a Virage, a gargantuan creature with giant limbs, claws and teeth that the winglies used as weapons to fight the dragons some eleven thousand years ago. The one residing here of course had been one of the few remaining, brought back to life by the essence of the dragons that Rose and Dart's group all possessed that beaconed like a flashing light tower.

The distinct change in atmosphere that was unlike anything he ever had or would ever again experience pressed upon him light a physical weight on his entire body. His limbs, used to the one, constant downward pull of gravity at an even ratio were utterly thrown askew by the shifting nature of the corrupted gravity. It pulled then pushed, in all equal and differing measures. Just as he thought he was adjusting to the shift it would change again, making his body have to undergo the whole process once more.

Rose only seemed to watch on with mild fascination as Zack fell on all fours, heaving intently as his body struggled with the distorted nature of the valley. He felt an indescribable form of vertigo grip him, and on several occasions felt he would pass out entirely. Minutes ticked by, although to Zack he would later reflect felt like hours and would wonder if somehow the flow of time was also affected, but slowly, ever so slowly he began to cope with the pressure of this warped, lifting canyon.

"What happened to this place?" Zack asked softly as he slowly got back to his feet. His face was a light shade of pale, as if the valley had also sucked out all the blood in his face as well.

"This was the result of a battle between Dragoon's and Winglies during the Dragon Campaign. The magnified power of the magic that clashed together here left this place unstable, as you can see" Rose chuckled softly, although without a smile or any real humour. "It's somehow fitting that I am for a second time explaining the events that transpired in this place to two different people and yet both shared the Red-Eyed Dragoon Spirit no less. Fitting, and kind of funny. Perhaps fate had a sense of humour after all."

Zack didn't comment on this but he didn't have to ask to know the person she was talking about before him was Dart.

Now free of the initial sicken grasp of the abnormal valley, Zack was free to feast with his eyes on the scene surrounding him. It was unlike anything he could even dream or imagine. It wasn't merely the numerous rocky platforms that twisted and pulled at seemingly random intervals, but the fact that on both the topside and under vegetation was growing. Stick Trees and small shrubs that extended in all directions were present on most of the major plateaus while the deformed environment resulting from the clash of unimaginable magic wasn't something you could only feel but actually _see _by the gods. Pockets of twisting nothingness seemed to appear and fade in all areas of the valley, some the faint colour of yellow or gold, others the more visible colour or blue or purple. In the distance he also thought he could hear the rumble of thunder.

"You ready to continue?" Rose questioned indifferently, having moved forward from her earlier reminisce. Zack nodded and she took the lead, walking northward on a large surface that led off into other large platforms often only accessible by travelling through the warped gravity by means of large stones that acted as passage between area to area. Zack didn't like this at all, and the whole time he stood atop large enough floating land masses to hold the two of them he could only imagine with frightening vividness what the result would be if the surface decided to turn on itself, leaving them to plummet to what would surely be their doom. _Or would were merely float up like these rocks? _He wondered, but the idea did nothing to quell his fear of falling.

They did this from platform to platform as it arced out towards the central land mass at the rear, but it was slow and laborious work, particularly for Zack who was still adapting to the ever changing gravity. Rose didn't face the same issue, but thankfully for once she was mercifully silent about their sluggish progress.

Eventually they were face with a large platform that had another large platform hovering above it, sandwiching them between two pieces of large debris. Noticing the absence of any hurtling Zack wondered how they would now advance.

"Err, now what?" he asked Rose, who was studying the ground. Not far from them Zack saw what she was fixated on: A small painted mark on the ground, almost like an unknown hieroglyph.

"Come here" Rose commanded, pointing to the ground were the hieroglyph was surrounded by a bleach white circle that Zack thought looked somehow ominous. Cautiously Zack did as he was bid and stood on the strange circle. Just when he thought nothing was going to happen, he felt himself being hauled up, his stomach felling like it was going to drop out from under him as he was shot upward towards the stony ledge above. For a frightening moment Zack thought he was going to be slung head first by the strange magical catapulting device, but his body rotated so he was upside down, his feet touching the underbelly of the floating land mass. Staring blankly around for a few moments, Zack realised that he was now standing upside down on the underside of a huge ledge. He felt a scream begin to boil from the pit of his stomach, but all he could do in the end was manage a meek cry of delayed surprise.

Rose did likewise, who landed next to him.

"We're...standing upside down on a rock" he said in disbelief. He still had that churning feeling in his stomach that you usually get when suddenly going down a steep decline.

"As is the way of the valley. It's called 'corrupted gravity' for a reason."

Zack tentatively lifted a single boot. Nothing. He was glued to the underside of the plateau, like gravity was indeed reversed. It was a nauseating feeling. Even his dark hair, which should be hanging downwards, remained as it usually did, plastered to his neck and shoulders. Eerily it was as if it were somehow natural.

"This place is really messed up" Zack dryly. "I take back my complaint about being wisped away in a ball of teleportation; I'd take that over this any day of the week."

"Then let us make haste, the quicker we traverse, the quicker we can get back to natural land."

"That can't happen soon enough" Zack said in agreement as he tried to follow a leading Rose. It was difficult, every time he took a step his body instinctively told him he was going to plunge to his death. It was a feeling he couldn't easily ignore, despite the fact he knew it wouldn't happen. All he could do was try to fix his thoughts on how every step as a step closer to leaving this god forsaken valley behind. He just hoped to god he would never have to visit this aberrant place again.

Amika meanwhile enjoyed a much easier journey in comparison, the cart she often dozed her days away peacefully was able to endure the wayward trail that hugged half of the mountain face they were currently traversing as it dipped slowly towards the base of the towering rocky trench before it would ascend likewise on the opposite side. Even at its thinnest Eldrilen's Belt consisted of many narrow, fragile roads that clung to the almost vertical arches that made the dividing mountain range so perilous. Inclining and declining landscapes melted seamlessly together, leaving all those caught between the rising peaks at the whim of Eldrilen who's spirit is reputed to still linger within the trophy of his greatest destruction.

When not sleeping Amika was often chatting idly to her new found companion. Earl was eager to gossip about current affairs, most which circled around death of their King.

"Whispers that he's been murdered" the peddler had said with a somehow paranoid hushed voice, as if it were still dangerous to discuss such topics this far into the Belt. "By a band of hired mercenaries from Basil they say. Not only that, but to get close enough to the King to murder him reeks of inside assistance, or so the people are saying."

* * *

Amika didn't say anything to this piece of information and was hardly surprised to find out Wen was going to place the blame of their murdered King on the shoulders of Rose and Zack along with those who were slain, along with herself more than likely. It's what she would have done were she in his position, not only will Sandora now be stirred onto the war path with even greater ferocity after their leader being murdered by the enemy but desperately in need to quell that urge of bloodshed and revenge. If Sandora wasn't already fired up engine of eager destruction, it sure as hell will be now.

"But I guess you don't know nothin' 'bout that eh?" Earl said, fixing Amika who had climbed up beside Earl towards the front on the second mare pulling the cart with another one of those knowing looks.

"Sorry" she said, shaking her head. "A grunt like me doesn't hear much from the great vine."

"None the less I think it spells troubled times for us. Troubled times indeed..."

_More trouble than you know. _But again Amika remained silent, instead peering across at the stony rock faces that climbed towards the cloudy sky to her left, then across pass Earl to where the path abruptly ended, a large dark chasm separating the two halves of the mountain with a black deepness that appeared somehow malignant before giving life once more to the other side that would eventually spill towards the eastern ridges where she could begin her trek towards Hellena. That is if they were lucky enough not to get caught in a rockslide or fall downwards from the small rock path that was only just broad enough to squeeze the two horses and the cart should it decide to wither away entirely.

A few hours later when the dying embers of light gave way to the swallowing gloom entirely, Earl called for a halt.

"Best we rest here for the night" he said calmly.

"Right here, in the middle of this narrow path? Isn't that a little more dangerous than braving the Belt during the night? Plus it's not like it's stopped you the other couple of nights passed."

"Aye, but especially during nightfall we be facin' many more dangerous than a hazardous road. Demons be lurking in the foot of the Belt lady, and trust me, you don't want to be the one that stirs them."

"Superstitious nonsense. At worst we may be confronted with a wild beast or two or if really unlucky a small band of brigands, but in either event I'll be more than capable of handling either without much trouble."

"I'm not doubting ye prowess lass, but I'd not risk it all the same. I've travelled across this place more times than I'd care to and whether you believe it or not, there be some evil forces still lingering waiting to snag unwary travellers like ourselves. Plus, the horses don't like hiking through the dark. We'll be up at first sun light as sure as it will rise in the morn, so till then we may as well rest."

Sensing that the peddler wasn't going to be persuaded one way or another, Amika relented to his reasoning, although she wondered with unvoiced curiosity what would happen should another traveller riding a horse or two or even another merchant wish to get past. In the end it wouldn't matter, they were here for the night and so she would take the time to reflect, plan and try and get more sleep.

* * *

_Thump, thump, thump._

After an unmeasurable amount of time passed, Amika was roused from her light slumber by the sound of soft yet incessant bashing of the cart. Amika was awake and alert at once, much like Rose she had trained her whole life to be able to transition from sleep to full vigilance within seconds. And, as Rose could also very well testify, sometimes seconds was all you had.

Amika didn't react immediately, not physically anyway instead she moved her hands to her low hanging knives and strained her hearing and smell. The tang hit her first, an odour that was akin to rot or decay, and by the way the thumps were erratic, they stuck to a certain pattern. Amika was able to ascertain at once that the foes she was now facing were not creatures but humans. It appeared bandit's even ambushed people in an eerie setting such as this.

It was one of the few times in her life she had made a misjudgement.

_Time to earn my keep _she thought remotely. That was of course if Earl wasn't killed already (he chose to camp out on the road behind the cart even when she insisted it was fine for them to share the cart, god knows why) and the bandits were merely canvassing the goods.

Intent to simply wait in the caravan until one of the thieves was foolish enough to enter where he or she would meet a swift death thanks to the accurate lethality of which she wields her tools, the idea was quickly abandoned when she heard a shrill cry come from the merchant outside.

_Damn it all_ Amika cursed and moved out of the caravan on nimble feet. The sight she saw in the dim light of the two oil lanterns hanging on either side of the horses from extended wooden poles had shocked her in a way that very situations could and would continue to do so until the day of her death.

At first she saw Earl who had his back to the opening of the cart holding a long sword in one hand and a small round wooden buckler in the other. A second source of light in the form of a small flare burned bright green illumination from the side. In front of him were at least three human figures, but human figures was as far as you could draw the comparisons, for what she was now looking at despite the humanoid form was not a human at all. She had encountered winglies, malformed humans that were fit for the freakiest of freak shows and had many close encounters with the early prototypes of the human-wingly hybrids, but never had she been faced with an anomaly such as what now stood before her.

_Just...what the... _She couldn't evenfinish a coherent thought as she gazed upon the ambling creatures that could ironically enough only be described as demons. Jagged teeth inside a maw that was too large to be normal, a disfigured face that looked to have many different skin types and tones stitched all across it and most hauntingly of all deep eye sockets where only glimmers of red shone out from. The rest of their bodies appeared decaying somehow, _melting _even. Sinewy arms and legs that appeared so frail and decrepit that it was amazing they could even move.

Perhaps zombie was a more apt description, but in the end it wasn't. A zombie inferred brain dead slowness and while the mutilated bodies for the moment moved slow enough to support such a claim, the dangerous cunning in the red where their eyes should be was proof enough they were far from brain dead.

She saw all this but still couldn't quite believe it. It was staggering, even in a world as crazy and sometimes magical as this.

During her internal bewilderment Amika was close to being snared by another group of three that must have been the ones rattling the sides of the carriage to begin with. Without a second to spare Amika evaded the outstretched hand that moved with a swiftness that appeared impossible given their appearance, her face only narrowly missing what would surely be a gruesome rearrangement courtesy of the talon like claws that protruded at the ends of their gangly fingers where nails should have been.

Amika moved towards Earl, now back to back with one another.

"Weapons appear to have little effect, your best bet is to knock them off the slopes" Earl suggested without turning. Amika was relieved that her sudden presence hadn't startled the merchant, but by the sound of his drawn out rasping breath he was most certainly struggling.

Three on her side and how many on the merchant's Amika could only guess, but at the moment they were in the very dangerous predicament of being attacked from both sides. To have any chance one side would have to be cleared so they could gain the invaluable advantage of mobility.

"Hold firm a while as I try to cut a path." It became apparent to the dark woman when she opened her mouth why Earl had sounded so hoarse. The air around them was stagnant and somehow defiled as if some kind of miasma had taken hold like a thickening fog, making it difficult to even breathe. Drawing air though her nose made it no easier to bear as the noxious atmosphere began to coil in her gut, threatening to dishevel her stomach completely.

_It's like I've stepped into an entirely different world._

But as she forced her body forward in a flurry of moments that to an onlooker had the poise and precision of a seasoned dancer like anything else it was something she could slowly adapt to. Her knives carved the fragile flesh of the unnatural humanoids as easily as any human, but as Earl had warned it slowed them not at all. Faint splashes of dark liquid that couldn't really be called blood emerged from the wounds but that was the only indication that these treacherous creatures were even wounded. Without even a grunt of discomfort, the creatures pushed forward without pause.

And how quick they were! While slow to wander up the hill they were remarkably quick to strike. Razor hands lashed out like the crack of a whip while jaws snapped at her like that of a hungry predator. In an attempt to flank from behind to unbalance them and hence send them tumbling off the narrow face of the cliff Amika's efforts were thwart by the monsters unnatural ability to twist its tattered abdomen in a way that was uncannily serpentine. They would lunge for her as if to try and cling on to her with feet as well as arms, but Amika was able to slip away from its ghastly grasp if only just. Yet as lucky as she was for the moment she knew in the back of her mind it wouldn't continue to be so. Like in one of the many card games she would indulge in back home, it was only a matter of time before luck dealt you a bad hand. Only in this case a bad hand meant more than the loss of a few coins.

A few backward glances showed that to her amazement Earl was having a somewhat easier time. Whether due to the fact he may have faced such monsters before or because of the added protection of a shield, which allowed him both extra defensive as well as offensive options she wasn't sure, but it was a small weight lifted now that she wouldn't have to babysit him as well. Sheathing her left dagger and dipping the same hand into one of her waist pouches that held an assortment of miscellany items fit for many situations (being flexible was after all a speciality of someone with her particular talents) she fished out three round objects no larger than pebbles, locked them between her four fingers and tossed them towards sauntering horrors. As the small globes impact the three creatures and bounced of them seemingly harmlessly to the ground below they combusted, spraying green liquid that had been contain within the thin synthetic film. The monsters gave it no pause, as the crafty assassin expected they wouldn't.

She took a few steps back and waited for her demonic enemies to clear the cart, the horses bucking wildly but unable to break their rope tied bonds. They drew closer, and once Amika was once more back to back with Earl, she extracted a miniature flare from the same bag she had the spraying orbs and lit it before hurling it towards the leading monster.

A brilliant blaze erupted as the flammable liquid ignited, two of the three creatures wailing inhumanly as their festering bodies burned. They scattered frantically, as if to do so would somehow extinguish the flame, but all it achieved was two of the unholy monsters losing balance and toppling off the side of the chasm.

The remaining horror halted before a thin line of fire where the oil had splattered on the rocky surface below. None splashed the cart as she had hoped, but it was still a risk, calculated or no, and Amika was glad to see it hadn't backfired. With only one remaining it made her fight considerably easier.

But instead of pushing forward, perhaps to avenge its fallen allies if such a bond even existed between such demons, it moved back, screeching obnoxiously as fragments of ember touched its skin. Not understanding at first, it dawned on her that these things feared fire if not light itself.

"Fire and light appear an effect deterrent!" the dark warrior said without looking back. More creatures stumbled up the slope from beyond the caravan.

The sound of more flares being ignited and thrown sounded form behind, followed by more inhuman shrikes.

"Aye, you speak true!" the merchant huffed triumphantly. But Amika registered it only remotely, her eyes fixated on the stream of monsters that were moving up from the depths of the path below. Five, six, seven at first... then as many as a dozen, maybe as many as two or three.

"By the gods there's a damn army coming up on my end!" Amika bellowed in disbelief. Three had been difficult to out manoeuvre three let alone as many as what had to number at least thirty.

"Not good" Earl winced. "I have a large supply of flares in the back, grab them and set up a parameter. They last a good hour before dying out, and if light it what these things truly fear then I have enough stockpiled to at least last till dawn.

_However long that is... _But it was the only idea that could work, as dicey as it was. If nothing else it could keep them covered until a more suitable solution. Darting into the cart she had been till now sleeping soundly in, Amika tore into the boxes of emergency flares, took a few out with her then began to create a kind of wall of light, beginning at Earl's end first to give him reprieve. Once done they both set about lining them a few meters each way up and down the path, doing all they could to cover any blind spots. If light were what would give them sanctuary from these abominations, then there was no way they would be able to breach their new refuge.

"You were aware of the existence of such creatures?" Amika interrogated as she reflected on his earlier mention of demons. They had retreated to the rear of the wagon where several rows of brightly flashing flares surrounded them.

"I've seen some pretty unexplainable things within this dangerous place sure enough, but nothin' like what transpired just now."

Amika's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "I don't believe you. You're more than just a peddler, the way you fought, and your sword and shield are Sandorian issue. Who are you?"

Earl looked down at his discarded blade and worn shield that was resting near the large wooden wheels of the cart.

"Aye, I served for a time in the army. Ended up coppin' a debilitating injury to me right leg." Earl lifted his torn trousers to show a rather gnarly scar that ran from the bottom of his calf up to the mid-way point of his thigh. "Been limpin' like an old man ever since. Couldn't serve on the front line any more, and I'm no good as a medic or reconnaissance so I gave up the way of the soldier and decided to help the people of this country in other ways."

Amika still regarded him with a measure of distrust, but it was lifting, a little.

Earl slumped down, resting his back against the back of his wagon. "This country is in a bad state lady, worse than it's ever been by my reckoning. Famine and disease due to neglect is more rampant than ever, and all the revenue this country generates seemed siphoned straight into Kazas, although by the state of even our main capital the city itself doesn't see much of it. War has always been a part of our unfortunate history, probably always will be, bet never at the expense of the entire province."

He paused, his eyes drifting towards the blackened sky. "Soon, if this keeps up, this beautiful nation that was once a boon for all who were a part of it will wither and die, as sure as that of a wilting flower."

Howls that were disconcertingly akin to human rage pierced the otherwise stillness of the night from beyond the border of their safe haven. It made the hairs all over Amika's body prickle, and by the paling of Earl's face she thought it was the same for him as well.

"Better hope the flares keep em' away eh?" Earl said, trying his best to flash a reassuring smile. It was easily transparent though, his inner doubt and fear visibly seeping in. Amika clapped the man on one of his broad shoulders in a way of her own assurance.

"Retire for the night, if you can. I'll take watch."

"Aye, an old timer like me gets worn easily indeed. But get me if you need anything or find yourself hard pressed to remain awake eh?"

Amika nodded and after the exchange of a few more words he disappeared inside the wagon.

Despite the weariness that tugged at both of them like a dampening cloth, neither of them could get a moments respite as the grisly shrieks of promised revenge ceased not until the first rays of sunrise.

* * *

After what felt to Zack like a perpetual loop of the same development, climbing across precariously broken chasms and floating portions of earthy landmasses along with the constant unnatural manipulation of the ever shifting gravity, he along with Rose had finally made their way towards the apex of the divided canyon. For him it had been a journey like no other, a battle that wasn't just fought externally (his wounds made it particularly difficult on his injured body) but internally as well. At times it was as if the entire valley was against them and as a result frequent yet brief periods of rest were required as he combated a hostile environment that gave him no chance to really adapt. Rose begrudged him not at all for his need for respite, even when it bordered on excessive (he suspected that although she would likely not call a stop herself as per her relentless nature, she welcomed it all the same). It wasn't merely the arduous climbing and dangerous travel by fragmented terrain, as bad as they were, but the way the variation in gravity sapped his vigour like a slow acting venom, threatening to consume him entirely. Zack didn't know if Rose was affected by this sort of feeling as well on any level or whether her body was immune but the few times he felt on the verge of collapsing under the mounting weight she was there to support him with a knowing hand.

The distorted sky above, masked by black clouds that seemed to move not an inch since they entered made it impossible to discern the time or day or whether it was day at all. Rays of scant sunlight that were as ever changing as the persistent gravity penetrated the dark sheen overhead on occasions but that was the only variation in an otherwise impassive and bleak sky. It somehow made the expedition all the more harder to tolerate, an uncanny reflection of the mood that had settled within his core.

Standing on one of two broken sides of the huge V cliffs that resembles tow fallen pillars, the entire valley was on display for them to gaze at. Rose did so with a distant glance, coming to a halt to survey as if in some kind of trance. Zack knew the look well; she had been wearing that visor of melancholy since she had arrived.

"Memories?" Zack said softly, breaking her thoughts. She turned to him slowly, her sombreness slow to fade to her usual poker face

"Seems so."

"Feel like sharing?"

Rose paused, as if to consider his question carefully. It didn't occur to Zack then but had to her and gave her reason to consider that it was the first time since their explosive incident that Zack was treading on personal grounds.

"Last time I came here with Dart, Shana, Albert, Haschel and Meru, we encountered a petrified Virage that I had thought long since dead." She gestured towards the gap between the two cliffs. "It resided here, in the middle of the valley."

Zack's mind turned to pieces of scripture about the legendary thralls of the winglies, gigantic, alien like humanoids with limbs as large as castle spires along with powerful magic boot. "I had heard that such mythical creatures were huge but..." Zack peered down the valley, which was around forty to fifty feet by his reckoning. "To be this colossal? How can such beings be defeated?"

"They were after all creatures fit to challenge the mighty dragons. We were lucky though, the Virage we fought was far from full strength. Its eons old prison had withered away most of its power."

"Will we errr... be running into any?" Zack asked hesitantly.

"I would think not, but I had thought the same thing during previous travels. In any event it would not bode well for us if we somehow did, our chances of defeating one, even in a weakened state would be slim at best."

"Doesn't sound so reassuring" Zack said with a heavy sigh.

"Assurance invites complacency" Rose said as she turned away from the hanging edge. "Come, we still have the last leg of the journey to hike. Soon we'll be nearing the exit that will take us to Death Frontier where we can reach Ulara."

"About that" Zack began to inquire as he followed her up the final soil path that curved around the summit. No more traversing by means of moving rocks thank the gods. "I've never heard of such a town. Is it close to Mille Seseau?"

"It's an ancient wingly town, one of very few not left in ruins or at the bottom of the ocean. I have... a close acquaintance there I wish to get in contact with. They will, with a bit of luck, give us safe passage directly to Deningrad."

"You're not sure on the whole 'safe passage' part?" Zack asked, sensing a lack of surety in her reply.

"Who can be sure of anything anymore? All we can do is wait and see. You'll find out soon enough with your own eyes."

Feeling that she was somehow evading his probes but knowing there was nothing he could do to make her elaborate if she wished not to, Zack let out an unsatisfied groan but pushed his curiosity no further. All he wanted most of all was to be out of this warped hell, and the sooner the better. Prolonged time within its confines could drive one insane.

But unfortunately for Zack, the exit wasn't as close as he had hoped. The path leading what would appear to be beyond the clouds above seemed to stretch on indefinitely. A morning dew like fog had settled atop the peak, cutting visibility by half. All he could spy was Rose's dark frame a few paces in front him still moving unhampered by the mist.

_At least they're no monsters to ambush us_ Zack thought without much joy. A battle or two with local predators would at least take his mind off the—a burning pain suddenly erupted from his injured back, breaking apart his internal musing. It felt like hot liquid had been poured over his wound, and despite his best efforts he couldn't help but release a grunt of suppressed pain. Slowly he lowered himself to his knees in hopes to give his back some relief.

Rose watched him carefully for a few moments but said nothing.

"I need a few minutes" he requested, eyes on the rocky ground he was now kneeling on in hopes to focus his mind and breathing.

Rose looked off into the distance without a word. As she did so Zack slipped what he hoped was an inconspicuous hand under the rear of his worn shirt. What he touched felt wet as he brought it to his eyes and confirmed what he had suspected: Blood.

Wiping it on his dirty pants Zack spent a few more seconds dealing with the heated pain. Mercifully it began to quickly ebb into a light throb.

"Okay" Zack said as he slowly rose back to his feet. He expected to be met with another bolt of pain but the aching only amplified slightly. "I'm good to go."

Rose studied him with knowing eyes. "Turn around" she said in a tone that was more commanding than requesting.

"Why?" he asked defensively.

"Don't bother hiding it from me. My nose is keen to the scent of blood and I know you've been struggling with your injury since you've started climbing. I let this go on for a while but I can do so no longer without at least inspecting and dressing the wound if necessary."

"It can wait till we're out of here" Zack disputed.

"How many times do I have to repeat myself? You're no good to me crippled or sick because of infection. Nor would you be any good in your current state if we were faced with a combat situation. That assassin gave me some of her healing salve, so if nothing else we can re-close it."

"Damn it all" he muttered feeling weak and helpless all over again. Her turned and lifted his shirt, exposing his aggravated wound. "How is it?" Zack asked tentatively.

"Not too good, but not as bad as I had expected. It's looked irritated mostly; due to overstrain more than anything I'd say."

But the way she quickly fetched the natural healing balm made him think otherwise.

"Is that really all?"

"Just be quiet, this will probably hurt a bit, but it'll help keep your wound protected and clean."

"So it's that bad is it? Ahhh—" Zack let out a pained moan as the ointment was applied to his injury. "Warn me next time will ya!

"Don't be a baby I did give you warning. Now hold still, it's hard to rub it in when you're squirming."

Zack shook his head and sulked, feeling like a young kid getting his scrapped knees treated by their over-loving mother. This thought prompted a chuckle he wasn't able to stifle despite the consequent flare of pain the sudden movement would bring. While the current scene may be representative of a mother tending their wounded child, Rose was anything but over-loving.

After being berated half a dozen more times for not being still, Rose finished applying the mixture of herbs and oils as well as restitching any loose or split sutures. He had to admit, the cooling effect did wonders for his searing cut.

"We'll rest a time longer before continuing" Rose suggested, taking a seat next to him.

"I've been meaning to ask you something. How is it that he was able to cut through my Dragoon Armour?" Zack wondered.

Rose had meant to chastise him on his foolishness for running in headstrong without knowing what he was up against, but the thought had been lost in whirlwind of recent events.

"There are two known artefacts that were created by winglies to directly oppose the power of Dragons—and hence Dragoons since that's where our power comes from. One is the Dragon Block Staff, a weapon that evaporates nearly all of a dragon's power for a time, leaving them essentially no more than hulking lizards, and a sword known as the Dragon Buster which can slice through the armoured scales as well as our own mail as if it were nothing more than thin pieces of cloth. That famous sword, the Dragon Buster, is what Wen attacked you with. You were very lucky to survive, a good man I knew not so long ago was not so fortunate."

"I had no idea" Zack replied sheepishly.

"That hot temper will get you killed if you do not learn to keep your emotions in check. Especially against opponents such as Wen who use such obvious weaknesses to their advantage."

"So if he has a weapon like that our Dragoon Spirits are rendered useless..."

"Precisely, so keep that in mind when and if we face him, we'll have to think of a different approach to subdue him."

"But he can transform, so he has a clear advantage. How can we even such odds?"

"For now I'm not sure. It's something I've been thinking of but I most likely won't come to an answer until we actually face him. The best method I can think of at the moment is to disarm the buster, although that'll be no easy feat with his skilful swordplay, compounded further by his own ability to transform."

"He really does have us where he wants us. No wonder he had no problem letting us go."

"Do not let such despairing thoughts weaken your resolve. He will regret not stopping us when he had the chance." Rose smiled another one of her narrow, malefic grins that promised future cruelty. "After all, one does not survive for so long without learning a how to defy a few odds."

Zack considered a moment. "Since we're here chatting idly, how is it that you can live for so long? It's been bugging me for a while now but I somehow found it prudent not to ask."

Rose's hand dipped to a bright jewelled, golden chocker that sat adorned at the base of her neck. She unfastened it with a clip from behind and held it out for Zack to see. It was for the most part a thin band except for the front where it entwined in a strange web of tangles, three small jewels each red, blue and green shimmering in the centre.

"This is the artefact of my prolonged survival" Rose explained. "Charlie Frahma, an old wingly friend who resides in Ulara consequently enough, created this device so I could survive indefinitely."

"So you're like, immortal?" Zack inferred excitedly.

Rose shook her head. "That may have been a bad choice of words. To be more specific, it halts the natural aging process. I am still susceptible to physical afflictions and ailments. It does however accelerate the rate at which such wounds heal, provided I survive. But that too has its limits; grievous wounds will still cripple and kill me if dire enough."

"I thought your recoveries were beyond human capabilities" Zack said, happy with his own surmise. However his words appeared to have some kind of solemn affect, her eyes showing briefly a gateway to a misery so intense it was hard for Zack not to flinch. And then it was gone, as if it never were. Turning away Rose placed the choker back across her neck.

"A monster would be a better word for it. But none the less, I'm not even sure it works its intended purpose anymore since the death of Melbu Frahma."

"Why would that have anything to do with it?" Zack asked, not following her meaning. Still unaware of the cruel role she played throughout the last eleven-thousand years Zack was left somewhat abashed at her statement.

"It's of little importance" Rose responded, and just like a clam she closed her feelings to him. What settled in next was a period of somehow uncomfortable silence. Zack didn't like it, and as he usually did he would seek to break it.

"How old were you before the end of the Dragon Campaign then?"

Rose pondered this a time, pondered so long in fact that Zack wasn't sure she was going too responded. Her head tilted up towards the sky she continued to consider before replying.

"I was twenty-six at the conclusion of the war, if I recall. After so much time has elapsed such trivialities such as age cease to matter."

"So young to be burdened with such a responsibility" Zack mused, attempting fruitlessly to imagine himself in such a circumstance.

"We were all young really. The youngest of our group, Daima lost her life when she was only sixteen."

"Such a tragedy that someone so young had to lose her life" Zack said sorrowfully.

Rose got to her feet, extended her hand to her recovering comrade. "We best get moving. Do you think you are able to continue?"

Smiling, Rose took her hand and she helped him to a vertical basis. "Of course, I'm made of tougher stuff than you think!"

Moving forward towards their destination, Rose and Zack continued, much to his surprise to engage in banter about times past. Zack didn't know if it were the familiar setting that was loosening her tongue but she was all too willing for the most part the chatter about her old companions and escapades during the famous war, a topic that until now she had only shared sparse details. The two of them didn't know it then, but on the back of a fracture that could have destroyed their partnership born a newer, stronger bond that would sow the seeds of something far stronger. As they reached the exit and stepped foot into a land that was every even more desolate and unforgiving than Tiberoa in Death Frontier, the most remote desert and locale in all Endiness. Yet even so, faced with such a harsh panorama the sun greeted them warmly, perhaps a fitting mark of their re-developing connection.


	18. Chapter 18: An Unexpected Reunion

**Chapter 18: An Unexpected Reunion**

"Here will be fine."

Earl scanned the immediate area apprehensively despite the Belt being many miles behind them now, a habit which he had developed since they escaped indescribable demons that vanished upon sunrise. Neither of them had spoken a word of it, and even Amika, who was a woman that could take just about anything she could see as hard fact as per her empirical nature had a hard time believing. To say the very least it would be a night that neither of them would soon forget.

"Ye sure?" the trader questioned.

"You're veering up through the north-eastern coasts, correct?" Amika reaffirmed.

"Aye, that be my course."

"Mine is due south from here." She glanced to the rear of the caravan as the horse she sat atop came to a halt; Earl's who's trekked abreast doing likewise. Grassy prairies continued to spread south as they had eastward on their journey to this point, a noticeable yet welcoming disparity to the seemingly endless marshlands they had since been pushing through. They were also close enough to the sea now that she could smell and even taste the refreshing salt (although any kind of scent when compared to the rotten odour that permeated the split valley was invigorating). A dense forest spanned out somehow majestically to the north where it would eventually lead to the north-east most border before splitting towards Basil.

Another perceptive expression crossed the ex-soldiers face. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were headin' towards Hellena."

Amika waved away his shrewdness with a firm yet not unkind movement of her hand.

"Worry not where I'm heading and worry about your own kind trader. While the greatest danger of the trip may be past there is still plenty to worry about even in these tranquil parts of the country. It'd be a shame if misfortune would fall upon you because you worried too much about someone else's safety."

Earl bellowed another one of his signature good humoured cackles. "You speak true lass, you speak true. Tis a shame we have to part ways, but the pleasure of company has been all mine." He extended a rough hand, which Amika took without hesitation.

"The feeling is mutual. I thank you for the providing me with quick passage across the Belt, you have been most kind." She pulled out a handful of gold coins from within the confines of her satchel and held them out to him. "Fair payment, as I promised."

Earl seemed to give it a somehow longing gaze before he pushed her hand away. "Given your role in what happened that night I think it's safe to say you have more than paid for my service."

"I insist."

"Unless ye wish to be sitting here insisting the last half of the day away, then I'd suggest you best be on your way." Another grin beamed form below his brimmed hat. Amika could only shake her head, concealing a smile of her own. Dismounting with liquid fluidness, Amika walked towards the front of Earl and his horse and placed the coins in his lap before he could protest any further.

"Take care of yourself, there are many who depend upon people like yourself. Godspeed." Moving her hand delicately across the top half of her frame before closing her fist and holding it at against the centre of her bosom, Amika gave a short bow of her upper body to complete the known Sandorian ritual of respect. The merchant appeared amused and returned the gesture in kind from atop his horse.

"You take care also. Sandora is short on good soldiers like yourself and can ill afford to lose any more of them." With a final wave Earl gigged his horse into action, slowly carting the cartridge towards the thickets that lay ahead. Amika watched this for a time, his two horses and wooden cart slowly melting into the forestry that's greenness began to give way to the more auburn nature of autumn. She was then gripped by an impulse to follow him, to help his noble crusade and enjoy the finer qualities of life like enjoying the subtle seasonal changes, an impulse so strong it was almost impossible to ignore. But duty, no matter how strong her arbitrary desires would always come first. She was after all still a soldier of Sandora, and her duty was to eradicate threats internal as well as external.

_But it would be nice to spend a time just watching the scenery _she thought wistfully. She had never known something as simple as staring the falling leaves of a tree or watching the dipping flights of sparrows that nested atop them could be so absorbing.

_When this is over I want to come back here and explore this forest_ she assured herself. But as she turned her back and faced a situation much more bleak in the towering black edifice of Hellena, viewable in the distant south-eastern peninsula even from the good day or two distance that now separated them, a sinister feeling stole into her mind that told her otherwise. Told her that all that awaited for her in Sandora's largest and cruellest prison was the grim reality of death.

She realised then her earlier whim was not one as capricious as she had thought but one of fear. Perhaps her deep intuition was telling her to flee, to give up this futile quest and to enjoy what was left of her freedom and life. After all would doing all this bring back her slain King that she loved so dearly?

But the image of her King's execution had a sobering effect on her wistful dreams. Facing such terrors were what true soldiers were about. She had taken a pledge of allegiance, a pledge that dictated if necessary she would sacrifice her life if that were what required. To back down now, to run, to hide, would be an insult not only to Hytas but to everything Sandora had ever stood for.

So giving the serene forest one final look, a place she knew deep in her heart of hearts she would never actually get the chance to re-visit, she moved forward towards her destiny with renewed determination.

* * *

"Incredible" Zack breathed in stunned amazement as his gaze fell upon the entrance to what was once one of the largest non-Wingly strongholds in Endiness' long recorded history. Large was one was to describe it, but it was more than simply enormous despite the broken state of the old architecture, it was somehow profound as well as sizeable. Nestled amongst the remnants of huge copper clay and stone slabs that greeted them on both sides like fallen pillars were overgrowths of grass and shrubbery that also appeared somehow oversized, melting seamlessly with the earthly fragments of what may have once been a kind of giant lookout as if the two shared a kind of communion. The touch of nature was painted upon every building (although that was a gross oversimplification for they were not buildings in the true sense but more a feudal habitats created out of the many alcoves and high cliffs that surrounded the compound like the defensive walls of an enclosure), broken or otherwise. Looking past the immediate decimated constructs and statues that littered the narrowing walkway like giant rubble lay a set of massive stairs that ascended towards the raised levels of the ancient metropolis where many large sectored adobe archways and stone spires spread across what may have once been an elevated vale, the haunting remnants of what must have once been a teeming civilization. No doors or windows or anything so modern protruded the strange stone and clay creations just arching gaps that slowly gave way to darkness as they receded into the many dark caverns they were built around.

"It was once so much more glorious. That was of course before us Humans destroyed and plundered it."

Zack didn't reply right away, he was still trying to absorb the sight that was before him. He had seen so many indescribable scenes during his short journey with Rose, but none he reckoned could compare to this. It was old and decaying, but what was still only partially broken seemed to radiate as if to try and reclaim the simple splendour it had once been.

"How could we wreck something so magnificent? It's got such a harmonic bond with everything around it its almost hard to believe it were manmade to begin with."

"It wasn't manmade" Rose corrected. "This is the Home of the Gigantos, or so at least we came to know it, I'd like to think the Gigantos themselves have a more fitting name for something so unorthodox. In any event people began to view these gargantuan creatures as a threat, and so under the rule of King Carlos who ruled Serdio before it became divided into two provinces sought them out and exterminated any he came across. Besides a lucky few he came damn near close to rending the ancient race extinct."

"That's... inexcusable" Zack murmured, visibly perturbed by the latest lesson in Endiness history.

Rose shrugged. "It's the nature of Humans, as it has always been. Despite the Gigantos superior strength and endurance, being the ninety-seventh species that Soa birthed, a much earlier creation than both Human and Wingly, they lacked our intelligence and could easily be outwitted by good strategy."

"Were they really that much a threat?"

"Perhaps, they were primitive and warlike in nature, savage as any monster and fierce in their defence of anything they considered home. During the time of the Human's rapid expansion they were likely viewed a mild threat, but more than that I think because they were tools used by the Winglies much like the Virages, they had that left over stigma from the Dragon Campaign. We are egocentric and very reluctant to share the world we strived hard to liberate we other races, so there's a number of reasons that such an aggressive movement came to pass, feel free to take your pick on which one you think is the most likely."

"I can understand we may have been a little wary share our land given the tyranny of the Winglies, but is it really that hard to strive for a world where all creatures can live in peace?"

Rose shook her head, giving him another one of those 'how naive can you be?' glances.

"We can barely live among ourselves, how do you expect us to accept the alien cultures of other races?"

"Not all people desire war and anarchy."

"There are more than you would think. But let us progress, this place is quite the area to navigate and we have a ways to walk yet if we are to reach Ulara."

Zack agreed and followed Rose who made her way across the soft dirt path that led towards the crumbling steps that spanned beyond. "Just be on your guard, many bandits as well as monsters have taken up residence in an abandoned place such as this."

"Understood" Zack said brightening a little. "But you know one of these days there will come a time where it will be _me _who lectures _you_ for a change."

Rose huffed at this without turning to face him. "Highly unlikely, unless the lecture involves wasting time chattering about unrelated topics."

"As cynical and experienced as you are" Zack said in a mock condescending tone while waving an unseen figure from behind as they breached the first of the long flight of stairs. "There is always a first time for everything."

Rose held up a halting hand, no longer paying Zack's babble any heed.

"What is it?" Zack asked coming to a stop.

"I feel as if we're being watched." Rose scanned the shifting landscape around her, sure she could feel a pair of eyes on her but it was a futile effort. If there really was another presence hiding within the shadows than the nature of the setting made it almost impossible for her to locate them.

"We move with caution, no more talking unless necessary."

Zack nodded in silent affirmation, keeping his own eyes peeled. He found as much success as Rose had, but now that she had brought it to his attention, he too was sure that they were being somehow observed.

But putting that in the back of their mind for the time being the pair reached the top of the stairs and were met by a kind of decorative front entrance. A wall of towering sculptured stone spanned in both directions like a kind of checkpoint where a centre ring that acted as a kind of massive door separated the two from the middle that had giant, otherworldly faces chiselled into the makeshift barricade like giant murals. Atop this dividing wall were more statues, huge warriors with axes and swords standing proudly atop each edge of the middle partition that had been carved with so much detail that to Zack it struck him as a kind of homage to ancient warlords or valorous warriors you would see within empires of past.

"This place is so..." Zack had trouble finding the right description for the culture that had obviously been embedded into the civilizations very construction as tribal as it was. Paintings as well as unreadable markings and glyphs accompanied the statues and sculptures prompting further questions about the mystery that shrouded the setting's ethnology along with the race that created it.

"We have no time to stand in wander" Rose said as she pushed forward towards the middle opening. Zack shook himself out of his admiration and followed Rose to the inner sanctums of the area. Unfortunately for him at least, the wonders ceased as he gazed upon the ruined heart of the home. Banks of entire pieces of earth much like in the Valley of corrupted Gravity were missing, leaving only dark crags in their wake. More broken architecture was littered along the narrow path that was more a mountain trail now thanks to the linear nature of the separated terrain, and hiked up towards the peak of the once flourishing city, although the stone stars that paved the way were considerably more deteriorated and being so close to the gaping cleft of nothingness that loomed to the left like an ominous haze made the path particularly hazardous. Of that small westward bank that jutted over away from the main path across the corroded nothingness like a kind of pedestal Zack noticed a third opening, a small looking cave that somehow appeared to made recently, the opening lacked the natural archaic artistic design of the others that they had so far come into contact with.

However as Zack glanced at his comrade it became clear Rose's attention was drawn the much larger that loomed to their immediate right, the cave's entrance paved in the same stone that was prominent throughout the rest of the city, lining the outside parameter like the wooden supports of an old mine entrance. From within the faint glow of jade radiated like tiny lanterns.

"Fireflies" Zack mused, extending a tentative hand into the gloom of the cave. Zack for a frightful moment had an image steal into his mind of a ravenous creature tearing off his arm or perhaps something else that had taken up residence here taking the small window of opportunity to catch him unawares but thankfully neither eventuated. All he felt was the rejuvenating effects of the firefly's magic cool the cuts and bruises on his arm.

"Fortunate they are still here" Rose said as she moved inside the grotto.

"Hey wait-" Zack tried to stop her but Rose only moved a couple of meters inward, far enough in that she was partially covered by the darkness, but close enough that should the situation require her to make a hasty retreat, she could do so without trouble. Once a small time passed and it was clear that no danger, at least for the moment lurked within, Rose turned to the side of the cave and pressed her body close to the rocky cave wall.

"Could you turn around for a few moments?" Rose asked in an uncharacteristically quiet tone.

"Why?" Zack wondered, perplexed.

"I've got a few injures I'd like mended across my back and stomach."

"That's fine; I'll still keep watch just in case."

Rose let out an exasperated sigh. "For the healing properties to be effective the fireflies need to make _direct _skin contact."

It took another few seconds for Zack to catch on to Rose's meaning. Once he understood she was asking him to turn away for the sake of modesty his eyes widened with surprise and slight embarrassment.

"Oh, right, right" he muttered, turning his body away. Once he did he could hear the light sounds of Rose shedding the top half of her clothing and despite his best efforts inappropriate images besieged his mind. Feeling an unsightly flush cross his face, Zack did all he could to shake such thoughts away. He was met with some success, but when a soft moan of both relief and contentment escaped her lips from behind him as the fireflies did their miracle work; his good work was quickly undone.

"So errr... Wouldn't it be great if we could catch a few of these bad boys for later use?" Zack prattled thoughtlessly; resorting to the only method he knew how to break his own anxiety. His voice sounded tinny and false to his own ears and he prayed to the gods that be that Rose didn't notice this change.

"If only it were that simple" Rose responded. Her tone, at least, was the same as ever, half naked or not. "The Rock Fireflies extract their curative abilities from the essence within the rocks they dwell in. Only certain rocks excrete such essences, and it is that which grants the fireflies their natural healing. Unless you are willing to carry a large rock on your back, all you would be carrying around were normal fireflies."

"Oh" Zack said without much thought. Without anything more to say or add, Zack remained rigid and silent as Rose finished the process of healing her wounds.

"Your turn" Rose said as she emerged from the cavern. Zack turned to face her and gave a quick nod before striding into the cave, once more preying the flush he felt earlier was not still lingering. Once inside he peeled off what could only really be called ruined piece of covering cloth, and pressed his aching back against the rocks the fireflies were hovering around. Immediately he felt the sensation of cold, yet not unpleasant liquid trickle across his neck and back. That sensation enveloped his entire torso and he too found himself moaning as noticeable respite washed over him as if he had just submerged his body in the warmest of baths.

"This is amazing" Zack said blissfully as he could feel the pain in his back recede to a mild tingle.

"That's why they are so sought after" Rose responded. "They're healing properties are only bested by the strongest of curative magic's,"

Once the feeling of relief began to fade Zack took it as his queue to leave the rock wall. Moving towards Rose with a freedom he hadn't felt since his injury Zack turned his still uncovered back to her.

"How's it look?"

Rose moved forward to inspect the wound.

"It looks remarkably better. The reddening around the cut that looked to be infected has vanished, and the wound itself has almost sealed entirely. I would still recommend caution, but on a whole it looks a whole lot better." Zack felt a warm hand trace the line where the cut had been made on his back, resulting in him recoiling violently as if struck at the unexpected contact.

"Still painful?" Rose inquired.

"A little" Zack lied masking the real reason for his hypersensitivity and feeling once more like a fool. _Damn it, I have to control myself _he berated mentally. To be so jumpy by a simple touch...

"I thought you said it didn't look infected when you saw it last" Zack accused as he wiggled back into his top in an attempt to turn the direction of the conversation.

Rose shrugged. "I didn't want to alarm you. In truth it did look pretty irritated, but rest assured it looks fine now."

Zack huffed. "Treating me like a child as usual."

"Only because most times you act like one."

While Zack couldn't be sure if she was entirely serious or not, her words still had a stinging quality to them. But he wouldn't have much time to worry about hurt feelings for he spotted movement from up ahead where they were yet to explore. Zack focused his eyes atop the largest area of the broken city where another archway much like the one where the fireflies were sat at the peak of the trail. As hard as his eyes scanned for the moment he could see nothing, but he knew he had seen _something_ and Rose's earlier statement about being watched was a feeling too great to any longer ignore.

"What is it?" Rose asked, recognising the change of his demeanour in an instant.

"Something is up yonder" Zack said, nodding towards the cavern at the top. They both studied it for a while before Rose shook her head.

"We'll be heading up that way anyway, if something up above lurks then we'll deal with it then. I can't imagine anything of any real threat would await us, bandits most likely at worst."

Zack who was cautious regardless of what may ambush them didn't share Rose's confidence. _Over confidence _it appeared like, a trait that was very unbecoming of a companion who was usually diligent even when it appeared unwarranted. His strained his eyes on the entrance to the large chamber that faded into blackness and while his eyes still revealed nothing, his mind's eyes told him there was something very much a threat waiting at the top.

Then he did see movement, or so he thought, a silhouette moving like an ethereal ghost shimmering momentarily in the gloom. It was to his good fortune he had that moment of recognition before a volley of arrows spiralled towards them for while Rose could rely on her split second reaction time that was all but second nature to her, his sensors in that regard were still not as sharp. Had he not realised that moment during the brief shift in the large pavilion that they were not merely watched but possibly under attack, he didn't think he'd have the wherewithal to evade the flying arrows without sending himself rolling off the broken ravine to his right. But armed with even a brief second of awareness, he was able to avoid a desperate move of panic and skirt to the side out of harm's way with a calculated step to the edge of the gulch without the risk of tumbling over. Rose on the other hand didn't have to move an inch; any arrows that were intended for her had been knocked away by a quick swipe of her blade.

"Can't imagine anything of real threat huh?" Zack murmured. Drawing his large pole arm and moving towards the first line of stairs that led up towards the second level before it curved around in a semi circle leading to another rocky stairway that spilled into the chamber above. Zack expected a second volley but none came. Not yet, anyway.

"Don't go up yet" Rose urged roughly. "The path ahead is narrow. You'll be in no position to manoeuvre around a second torrent, especially if you're caught on the stairs."

"Then what do we do?" Zack wondered exasperated. "Throw rocks at them?"

"Just wait hold still." Raising an open hand to chest height, Rose lowered her eyes and began to chant something inaudible as the coalescing of magic glistened within her palm.

Zack watched her concentrate and wondered as he usually did when he played spectator to one of her acts of dark magic if he would be able to harness such power. But both his thoughts and Rose's concentration were suddenly shattered by piercing screams of agony that resounded from atop the main chamber. It was just one voice at first, then two, then three, then an impossible amount to tell as the individual screams all mixed together into one inhuman wail of anguish.

Rose halted her spell but her eyes narrowed dangerously, her earlier untroubled mannerism fading in an instant. Just when Zack was about to ask what in the hell was going a line of human bodies flung out from the darkness in the hollow, some screaming in both pain and fear as they were swallowed by the broken chasm, others hitting the granite stairs with a sickening thud. Most of those who hit the turf outside were dying or already dead, huge gashes across their torsos or in some cases even only a half of a body were strewn across the two levels above the one the pair stood on, watching in horror. Some even made it as far as their feet, one particular bandit (or what Zack assumed bandits by their torn clothes and simple weapons, they could have also been poor bounty hunters he supposed) had his head separated from his neck, only a bleeding stump where it had once been. After the hail of bodies that had to be at least a dozen, the carnage abruptly stopped.

"Bandits most likely at worst eh?" Zack said with a nervous laugh. "Hate to tell you honey, but I doubt that a mere bandit did that just now. Looks like your wrong on two accounts there." Zack gripped his halberd tighter; his imagination running rampart at the possibilities of what kind of creature could create such a slaughter scene in such little time. An unknown monster? Or perhaps somehow a Virage had nested in this uninhabited location. Sweat began to trickle down his brow and face as his nerves really began to falter.

A sideway glance however settled him a little as he saw Rose wearing her usual unaffected expression. No fear or worry, just a steadfast determination to deal with whatever barred their way no matter what the enemy was.

Loud footsteps thudded from the large room. Soft at first, but they became louder to the point of almost ear splitting as it became clear whoever it was or whatever it was that had just massacred the gang of would be thieves was coming out to face them next. It was as if the earth itself rumbled with every step, and Zack knew without a doubt that whatever it was had to be big, _huge_ even. When the figure emerged from the darkness and into the light from two stories above, Zack found he was not wrong.

What stood atop the apex of the valley like a giant claiming his throne was a monster of a man that's height had to exceed ten feet. A plume of dark hair ran down the centre of his bronze skinned head, a kind of mow hawk if you would, while his face was covered by red tribal markings that Zack could not distinguish. The rest of his colossal frame, also bronze perhaps from endless days in the desert sun, was only partially hidden behind a thick leather harness that criss-crossed over his chest and stomach, leaving a large part of his massive frame unprotected. Zack didn't know if it were perhaps more for decoration than any real protection, but his dark tribal garments that were adorned with many studs, spikes and even on his belt a giant skull of a creature that must have also been large in size, like his own version of a trophy collection. Finished with what looked only like a pelt of leather protecting his lower half and almost knee high boots that were fashioned in a truly ornate pattern, the figure holding a giant battleaxe that dwarfed even his own spear looked more a berserker barbarian of old before the seeds of technology and evolved culture took root and flourished.

Zack glanced at Rose, perhaps to try and conjure up a quick plan of action, but her face was one of stunned amazement. Eyes wide and disbelieving, her battle stance dropped entirely, it was a reaction to an enemy Zack had never seen before, and it troubled him greatly.

_Or does she somehow know this creature...?_

"Kongol...!" Rose questioned with a booming voice so it could reach his small ears. With a giant leap from his tree-trunk like legs the gargantuan leapt from the top of the valley to the summit they now stood on in one hurdle, his feet crashing into the ground with the force of a minor earthquake.

The giant looked down at her as a tall man might a dwarf, his eyes an unreadable white without irises. The mammoth creature drew his axe high in the air and let loose and huge bellow that carried across what felt like the entire continent.

_Shit he means to crush her! _Zack thought furiously, but he had one small advantage: he was the giant's rear. With a quick precise strike he may be able to end it before it even-"

"Rose!" the giant bellowed in a tone so deep and rough in was impossible to discern if he said it in a way of affection or contempt. Rose smiled and nodded.

"I thought you were supposed to be dead."

At that point the name Kongol registered in Zack's mind. One of the Gigantos that helped Rose's struggle to rid Frahma from the planet once and for all. The thought made him relax a little, and, for the moment at least, abandon any attempted at a pre-emptive attack, but he was still well on his guard.

"Me? dead?" Kongol said with a hint of amusement. "Me not so easy to kill!"

At this stage Zack moved from around from his rear to his front (which was no easy task of itself), and took his place standing alongside Rose. Kongol leered down at him with an air of palpable judgment, his white eyes sizing him up in a way that was somehow impudent. While Zack certainly felt a measure of unease and even fear (it was impossible not to when face with such a daunting colossus) Zack didn't let any of it show, instead he stared straight back at him with eyes unflinching. While he couldn't be sure, Zack had a suspicion that a warrior like this was more akin to the predators of the wild, where displays of outward submission were a sign of weakness.

"At ease Kongol, he is an ally."

Kongol didn't disengage his probing gaze immediately, but once he did the giant did so in a way that made Zack feel like the fly that was allowed to escape the scrutinizing human after the said human decided it wasn't worth the effort to swat. Turning his attention back to Rose, Kongol moved towards her and embraced her in a hug, Rose's frame all but vanishing under his giant limbs and mass of chiselled muscle.

"Thought you were dead" the giant said, his tone a rumbling hum of heartfelt emotion. Kongol released Rose a few moments later. Rose returned his statement and embrace with a roguish smile

"I'm not that easy to kill either."

The giant nodded, his face glowing with open delight.

"But there is a reason I have come here my friend, one of grave importance. Let us exchange information and any relevant stories shall we, before you update you on just what we're currently up against."

"Kongol also have much to share" the Giganto agreed with a heavy voice.

"Is here safe? Or would it be best we seek a place a little less open...?" Zack injected.

Kongol swept Zack with demeaning eyes once more. "Kongol kill all intruders in Giganto Home. Place is safe."

"There you have it" Rose said with a half smile. Zack wondered if the giant was sure, could be sure that no other uninvited guests were lingering around the area. But he neither wanted to challenge Kongol's declaration and nor did he believe if there were any ruffians still lingering that after witnessing the sheer brutality of what their comrades endured, that they'd be eager for a second attempt.

"Let us move down the slope and get comfortable before we begin our meeting" Rose suggested, waving a hand towards the western embankment that led into the smaller cave. What would more be aptly described as a kind of jagged slope rather than an actual stairway due to how warn it had become, was their connection between the pain part of the vale they now stood on and the rocky plateau that may have once been an the other half of the province before it fell away to a dark abyss.

Zack and Kongol both followed Rose as she descended the incline with agile grace, and the three of them set themselves in a kind of triangle, Kongol sitting closest to the edge of the cleft, Zack taking a seat on the bottom stair of the broken flight of steps, Rose meanwhile taking her usual place as she leaned against the side of the cave entrance, arms folded.

And so the three of them spoke, updating one another on their own version of events, until they could all piece together the separate fragments of the puzzle into what was the beginning of the whole picture.

* * *

It was Rose and Kongol who did most of the talking, and of those two of course Rose was the most verbal. Kongol's basic grasp of the human language meant his points were concise, which of course wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but as he began painting more detailed imagery, in particular his grand escape from Kazas and hence avoiding the unfortunate slaughtering that befell the rest of his comrades, it became clear he wasn't detailing his events as well as he could have liked. Constant pauses in his story as he fumbled with what he thought were the right words seemed to exasperate the giant who despite his constant exposure to the language was never able to master it. But Rose was patient, and in the end his explained as well as he could and she assured him it was enough.

His input meanwhile had been uncharacteristically little, only adding small points or forgotten details when necessary. Otherwise Zack was content to simply listen. Rose would later tell him that she found this rather becoming of him, that it was good to see him content to simply absorb information as opposed to spewing it.

This went on for a good while judging by how far the sun had progressed towards twilight from when they had began the long discussion. Initially it was high in the sky, signifying midday or somewhere near but now it was well and truly on the decline, the rest of the afternoon in danger from running away from them.

"So you managed to escape the skirmish in the Black Castle and eventually made your way back here" Rose surmised. The Giganto nodded.

"We were sent in to stop Sandora's invasion. As soon as we enter we were attacked from both sides. A planned ambush" Kongol finished, his voice clogged with unbridled fury as he recalled the grim events. "Some of us were killed outright, others dragged away to somewhere else. I managed to fight through and escape." His expression then turned Sombre, as did Rose's. "I wanted to stay, to fight. But others wanted to go, to leave, to find help."

"So why here?" Rose wondered.

"I was hunted for many days after my escape. By both soldiers and things that could fly, like Winglies. I killed them all, but I knew if they kept coming I would grow weak and die. So I fled to the only place I know, home, where I would think of new plan." A pause. "I sorry. I failed to protect friends and failed to get help." The giant bowed his head, defeated.

"Worry about it not" Rose encouraged as she clapped one of his massive shoulders with one of her dwarfed hands. "You did what you could, and more importantly you survived. It is the Dragoon Spirit they are after, and as long as you still have it you are doing your part."

Kongol withdrew the bronze orb and studied it with expressionless features. "They will never get it. They will pay for what they did."

Rose nodded. "Yes they will. But to do that we need to get help, just as you were urged to do. To that end we are travelling to Deningrad, to alert Miranda who also still possesses a Dragoon Spirit. I would ask you to come with us Kongol. We may be weak separated, but together we are strong. Our aim is to rally all those we can and strike back at the enemy who took so much from us. Would you help us in doing so?"

Kongol stood up; glanced at the cloudy skies above and unleashed a primal roar that Zak thought was fit to shake the heavens. "Kongol follow, Kongol will have vengeance!"

Rose's lips twitched into a ghost of a smile. "Good. There will be many enemies to cleave ahead of us."

Zack, while still feeling uneasy about having such an intimidating presence amongst was grateful that such a monster would be fighting with them and not against them. Considering the odds that were currently stacked against them, having such a fearsome ally wouldn't be a bad thing at all.

"Well, if your both ready I'd like to leave right away" Rose announced, sitting up and stretching her cramping muscles. Zacks stood and did likewise. "Going through this cave will take us into the heart of the Death Frontier. Be ready, it is a dangerous wilderness if there ever was one, and travelling through its hostile sands is no easy task." Rose was looking squarely at Zack now.

"Why is that message directed at me?" he asked a little irritated and not yet knowing why.

"Because out of the three of us you are the only one who has yet to step foot into what's known as the most dangerous environment in Endiness. The journey here was only the outskirts, once trapped in the heart of the largest desert that makes the Tiberoan Barrens look like a play ground, very few survive to venture out. It has its illustrious name for very good reason, so if there are any preparations that you need to do personally, do them now."

"Brilliant" Zack moaned a little dejected. "At least I won't have to worry about losing my tan I suppose.

To this Rose could only shake her head.

* * *

"So here I am" Amika mused to herself as she gazed upon the daunting tower of what was the largest prison in all Serdio. She didn't know why she announced it verbally, perhaps she was hoping to garner some kind of extra courage, although as she stood upon the precipice that slowly descended towards the large, draw-bridge entrance that connected the peninsula she currently stood on to the small isle where the leaning tower was situated (no escape for any prisoner even if they did manage a kind of jail break, the surrounding cliffs made it all but impossible) she found it a futile effort. Leaning to the left around sixty degrees, the steeple that resembled a kind of giant spire loomed like a promise of death, thick plumes of dark smoke billowing from various outlets, almost like chimneys against the backdrop of glowing that gave it the appearance of a massive forge. In reality of course the truth was far more disturbing, the use of extreme heat was one of the better known ways to torture a prisoner if information was required (or one simply wanted to deliver an excruciatingly painful death), and torture was really what Hellena was all about. On closer inspection the various flushes of orange gave the leaning tower a maw like appearance, making the prison seem somehow alive, seething with malice and hate.

This had been the first time she had actually laid eyes on Hellena, and while she heard plenty about the vile aura surrounding it (partly due to its bloody history, the former head warden Fruegel was particularly renowned for his cruelty) actually seeing it for herself was a different experienced in and of itself. If not for the earlier circumstances which she found herself while she and Earl were trapped in the Belt, she would say it was one of the most chilling encounters in her life.

The question was of course how exactly she was going to get inside, find Dart and get him out. During her journey here (the last of the journey on foot taking a surprisingly small amount of time) she had gone over various ideas, but after seeing the structure for herself she realised that a half baked plan was only going to get her killed. She would have to be at her crafty best if she was going to have any chance at success with the mission. Fortunately for her being crafty is what she was all about.

The other problem that worried her was what if Dart wasn't really there? Or what if he had now been moved, perhaps Wen saw fit to change things around after his latest coup. But she quickly dismissed the notion. Dart, who was in possession of not just any Dragoon Spirit but that of the most powerful, the Divine Dragon and could not be taken lightly. Since he was certainly in the dungeon of Kazas which was the only other logical choice to hold such a powerful foe captive, than he would surely be at Hellena.

As she skirted the jutting rocks that veered towards the edge of the cape Amika saw that the bridge was not in fact drawn but still down. This struck her as odd, considering that unless they were expecting a visitor it was drawn at all times. And she could see no visitors, only two guards stationed at the end of the overpass.

_Perhaps they have moved him after all, or perhaps he really isn't in Hellena? _But she thought what was more probably was that it was an obvious trap, but almost too obvious. _It's like he's inviting us to try and take him. _And perhaps that was what he wanted, after all he probably expected Rose and Zack to be trying to break in, not an old special forces general. _And what better place to lay a trap? After all, it would make for easy picking if they were caught within the very prison they would likely be confined to. _

If that were the case than security within would likely be a lot tighter than on the outside. Getting in wouldn't be the problem, but remaining undetected once inside would be. As strong as she was, if she was caught than even she couldn't hope to take on the bolstered might of the entire Hellena security.

_Unless I can find a way where I won't need to. _It was then that the beginnings of a devious, if not incredibly risky plan began to formulate in her turning mind. The risk wouldn't worry her, after all was it not a risk in and of itself being here to begin with? And if she were to have any chance at success, than many more risks would have to be gambled upon. She just hoped that Lady Luck would be smiling down upon her.

Withdrawing from a large outcropping that masked her presence from the front gate security that stood almost like statues from the other side of the bridge, Amika began to saunter casually towards them, a sly grin etched upon her face. As soon as she came into view of the guards, fitted with typical green cuirass and silver leggings along with the standard issue helms, they dashed towards her, barking at her as they did which earned the attention of a couple more from within the jail.

"State your business stranger and be gone, this prison is under strict quarantine" the first one to approach her stated.

Amika drew her daggers and rotated them deftly with her dexterous hands. The four guards stiffened at once, lancing their long weapons towards her that that were like a large spear save for the fact instead of a jagged point they were large balls of spiked metal. Amika then placed the weapons on the ground and held up her hands in a gesture of surrender.

"I am Amika Rains; I am here by announcing my immediate surrender."

The squadron of sentries shifted uneasily and exchanged quick glances. They knew the name well, as she thought they would. It appeared her assumption about her name being thrown in with the 'rebels' of Serdio, undoubtedly the prominent names among them Rose and Zack who were allegedly involved in the uprising and unceremonious murder of their King was correct. After the momentary surprise of her strange surrender three guards moved around her, beginning the process of bounding her to shackles.

"I don't know what is it that you're tryin' to accomplish here" the fourth warden, one who was not undertaking the process of containment. "But I hardly think this a voluntary act of atonement." His tone was venomous, but Amika could also detect a note of uncertainty. "Either way you have picked the wrong place you traitorous bitch."

Amika stared at him with cold eyes. "I'm not surrendering myself freely" she said calmly. "I have certain information that will be of use to Sandora, and as such I'd see someone who has more authority."

"Oh you'll see someone of authority alright" the sentry spat hatefully. "Our head warden has been looking for new subjects to project his fury upon, and after the incidents within Kazas he is a furious man indeed." Amika felt the biding cuff her wrists painfully as the one of the wardens dropped down to pick up her daggers. With a nod of his head, the warden who had been directing traffic signalled the other three to chaperone her further within the jail.

_I hope I haven't made a mistake here _Amika thought ruefully as she entered the jaws of the beast known as Hellena Prison.


	19. Chapter 19: Longing

**Chapter 19: Longing**

As Rose had promised, the journey across the seemingly endless sea of sand proved to be a totally different landscape compared to the harsh wilderness of Tiberoa. The Death Frontier was a desert in the most truest sense, where in Tiberoa there were high cliffs and hard rocky dunes to span across the maze of sand and dirt in this desolate land there was only sand. And it was the soft exerting kind of sand as well; the kind of sand that you felt you could literally sink into. Factor in the raw, dry heat of the sun that sapped any moisture in the air like a fireball ready to explode, Zack found himself quickly missing the temperate, even if whacky climate of the Valley of Corrupted Gravity.

As their first afternoon waned into twilight the trio were met with only a brief respite as the cool atmosphere quickly turned icy with the absence of warmth. Going from extreme heat to extreme cold proved taxing and almost impossible to adjust to, particularly for Zack who had never experienced such drastic changes in temperature. For warmth they built a small fire with the few desert shrubs that they had come across, but they were sparse as even resilient flora struggled to survive in such a harsh wasteland. Moving in as close as safety would allow, the three of them managed an uneasy sleep as the frigid winds threatened to freeze extremities that couldn't receive enough heat from the body's core. Digging themselves under the sand where some of the day's heat still remained proved to help a little, but for the most part they were at the mercy nature and should it take an even colder turn, then the three of them would be in very real danger from suffering if not outright dying from hyperthermia.

While food wasn't such an issue as plenty of creatures who had spent thousands of years adapting to the harsh solved that problem (prime among the large Sand Sharks, creatures who burrowed under the sand and attacked unwary travellers form below, another added danger. Rose and her group were a natural food source to such creatures as well after all) water was a concern. They passed few oasis' that water could be drawn from and stored within their water skins, but for the most part they had to filter what water they could from the sand beneath, ideally from empty riverbeds that only ever saw rain a handful of times a year. The crude use of already dirtied clothing was used for this (which meant the water was never really clean, so they also ran the risk of being exposed to harmful bacteria) but with little other choice they had to chance it.

During their second day Rose said they were getting close.

"We shouldn't be too far from Ulara, we can make it by late afternoon or nightfall if we're lucky. And best hope we are as I'd not like to brave another night with such little protection from the cold. Nor would I like to be caught one of the frontier's many sandstorms."

Zack scanned the endless sand that rose and dropped like waves in every direction.

"How on earth can you tell? Nothing in the area indicates anything, for all we know we could be moving in circles."

"Rose correct" Kongol agreed as he followed Rose's gaze west.

Zack glanced at him, puzzled. "Are you two perhaps seeing some kind of mirage?" Zack was genuinely concerned, if they're only navigator was suffering from desert delusions than not only is she incredibly dehydrated but they would likely also be lost.

"No" Rose assured. "Can you not smell the fragrances of flowers? Not notice the slight but definite change in the sands texture? Notice the increase in moisture in the air?"

Zack focused his sensors for a moment but could detect none of what Rose mentioned.

"Ulara is a spring town, but it's also protected by an illusion to make it seem like a part of the desert as a way of keeping the town hidden. As such to know whether you're getting close, one has to open their other sensors. The climb in moisture indicates a large body of water resides nearby, the slight change in texture of the sand is because as good as an illusion is it cannot completely replicate the ever change setting it trying to emulate, and the scent of flowers is relevant because Ulara uses many for decoration. Once you know the signs to look for, finding Ulara which is usually towards the centre of the desert is not as difficult as it may seem."

Zack inhaled the air and while he couldn't smell flowers he thought he could feel a rise in humidity.

"I've made the journey many times; you can trust that I will not lead us astray."

"Sorry" Zack said a little embarrassed. "It's not I doubt you, it's just..."

Rose waved it away. "Worry not; after all I do not expect you to blindly follow my every example. If you did than you'd grow far too reliant on me."

Kongol huffed from behind. "The strong don't need to rely."

"Indeed" Rose agreed and Zack could only sigh.

"Another double team I see." It had been happening a lot, Rose and Kongol seemed to share a kind of unsaid communion with each other, a connection likely forged over countless battles. Zack felt a little envious of such a link, a link that he and Rose had not at this point shared. A gesture as little as a silent glance between them was full of non-verbal understanding, but Zack thought it also went beyond the battles shared together. They were both one of a separate kind, Kongol the last of a dying breed, Rose the last of a rebellion forged over eleven thousand years ago. That along with the fact that neither of them liked to talk much. Zack had tried to get some kind of conversation between him and Kongol to better understand him, but he either ignored him, glared at him, or cut him off with a simple one word response. Zack couldn't decipher if the Giganto genuinely didn't like him or if it was an issue of trust.

"Be on the lookout for a small overpass of broken rubble and stone. It shouldn't be hard to miss; it'll stand out in the backdrop of endless sand. That will be our passage to the spring town." Small reprieve apparently now at an end, Rose continued to trudge towards the direction of the blazing sun, the orange orb looking like a kind of distant planet. Zack no longer knew exactly what direction that was anymore (perhaps east? Or was it west? He had lost track during the first day) and neither did it seem to matter. To Zack it was like an endless replaying loop, being stuck in the same place that didn't change no matter where you walked or how far. It was enough to drive one mad; every time he tried to spot something, anything to indicate they weren't looping the same dunes of arid sands over and over he found his fortitude slipping that little bit more. What he wouldn't kill for a decent meal and nice, cool fresh water.

"Keep your spirit strong" Rose said after what seemed like hours of not a word uttered amongst the three. Even Kongol was had slumped his head downward, perhaps to shield his face from the Sun that was once more moving on the decline, threatening to throw them into another chilling night within a few small hours. They had skinned the thick hides of the few large Sand Sharks they had come across in hopes it will ward them against the icy chill but the thought was still a miserable one after nearly freezing to death the previous night.

"Huh?" Zack muttered as he pulled himself away from his inner misery.

"The frontier is not only dangerous in an external sense but an internal as well. Many poor souls die from the inside out before the desert claims their bodies. It is a pitfall you must avoid, and while it appears hopeless now rest assured we are heading in the right direction."

_She can sense my dejection _he thought unhappily. _Why am I always so transparent? _

"I know" Zack agreed. "It's just... all this travelling I guess is getting to me. If it's not fleeing from Sandora or trekking through the Barrens it's climbing up corrupted valleys and broken civilizations. Now we're faced with what appears an endless desert, a decent break would be nice once in a whole wouldn't you think? We haven't really had one since all of this started."

"No rest for the wicked" Rose said with a wry smile. "We will get one once we reach Ulara, until then just endure a little longer."

Zack, a little taken aback by her encouragement nodded silently and pushed forward, his spirit now lifted a little.

"I see something ahead" Kongol broke in suddenly. His bleach eyes were squinted under a giant hand that rested across his brow like a kind of visor to shield his face from the sun. Rose followed his gaze that focused directly in front of them and nodded.

Zack tried to do the same but wasn't met with much success. In the distant dunes of sand he thought he could see something, but it was hard to make out as the 'mirage effect' in the distance where the light refracts off the sand into air like a vapour mist made it hard to tell if it was real or simple a desert illusion.

"What is it?" Zack wondered, daring for a moment to hope.

"Our destination" Rose said, a noticeably dry crack splintering her usual deadpan pitch.

"I hope you're right" Zack said, pushing on with renewed determination. They all were now at the prospect of reaching Ulara, a haven that would save them from the scorching frying pan of this dust bowl.

_Gods I've never been looking forward to a decent bathing session so much in my life _Zack thought as the numerous irritated sand rashes across his body aggravated with every step. Unfortunately at least in his case the last leg of the journey wasn't as short as it appeared to be. Perhaps as a final kind of insult (Zack became sure this pit of hell somehow had a malevolent consciousness as silly as the notion was) the desert threw out its final mirage. What felt like hours melted away and to Zack they appeared no closer to reaching this elusive bastion of relief then they had when it was first spotted. Dark, almost shadow like projections that may be an outline to a kind of miniature fort seemed to taunt them from beyond the tendrils of shimmering heat in the far away distance and Zack found himself sure that they were chasing something which never existed to begin with.

"Nightfall isn't far" Kongol announced suddenly. Rose nodded silently.

"We'll need to pick up the pace a little if we're to avoid being stranded another night."

Zack no longer had the energy to even argue, he could only do his best to will his feet to trudge faster, although every step into what felt more like quicksand than any usual sand made the effort almost impossible. All he could recite over and over like a kind of mantra was _one step in front of the other_.

More time passed as Zack kept his head down to try and shield his eyes and face from the blazing sun that turned almost crimson as it began to dip behind the rolling sand ridges in front of him. He did his best to watch his feet rather than their destination in the distance, for each time he did and found the expanse between had not shrunk and only added to his growing despondency. The Death Frontier had a way at gnawing into your very core, to breaking you down with the millions of little things rather than a series of few but larger troubles. Lack of food, water, shelter, energy among a hundred of other problems sapped you of your will to continue despite the fact he had only spend two days and a night in this merciless environment. The few times he looked towards Rose he could see she was visibly suffering from the same physical problems, scorched skin, dehydrated and split lips as well as drained vitality partly but not entirely due to lack of sustenance, but the constant blaze of resolve in her azure eyes never faltered, never wavered or dimmed. Her ability to find a path and follow it to the end or at least as far as her body would allow was astonishing and while he thought he himself had matured mentally as a result of overcoming his own challenges this put it all into perspective for him. It should have been a source of inspiration for him he supposed, but whether due to the dampened state of his spirit thanks to the endless desert or whether he still hadn't overcome the emotional frailties that still lurked within he felt it did the opposite. It reaffirmed that the difference between the two of them wasn't just the added years of experience and hardship, it was something much more fundamental: She was simply made of sterner stuff, stuff he could never replicate even if he was given eleven thousand years to do so.

Lifting his head forwards with a sigh, he was met with a surprisingly pleasant sight. They _were _close to their destination. Very close in fact, perhaps only fifty to a hundred yards close. It seemed impossible, from the time he had last glanced up to see it still that impossible distance to what it is now, a very reachable goal was mind boggling. _Even time in this place is warped _he thought, but he was welcome for it all the same. Now that he could see it clearly, what he was looking at was so out of place he still thought for a moment it might actually be a mirage. What looked to have once been a stone circular checkpoint loomed like a cat in water, a platform overhanging a sandy cliff with a broken stone fortification (mainly reduced to rubble) strewn across the parameter. In the centre of the small platform which itself may have once been a small tower or keep, at least Zack thought so, was a green ring about half the size that appeared to glow softly like a lantern.

From beyond the remnants of the rocky wall was a nice view of the endless desert that spanned seemingly into infinity. Rose approached the wall (which was really more rubble) and moved a hand towards her throat, removing the small glimmering choker that was the essence of her agelessness. Radiating with a golden glow as well as the various coloured stones that were incrusted within its base, Rose held the artifact overhead and murmured something softly. The chokers vibrant glow increased until it was almost eye piercing, but the flash eventually died down to a small pulse, but behind that pulse was now a sight that left Zack in a state of momentary awe. The oasis city of Ulara was now visible for them to see, what was at one moment endless sand was now flourishing floating city atop a cauldron of pristine blue water. What appeared to be thick, trunk like roots extended from the edges of the afloat city across the gap of dipping water that resembled a kind of mote and buried itself into the sand banks as a way Zack assumed of keeping the tropical paradise stable. Besides the glimmers of unknown sophisticated technology and a vastness of brilliant flora Zack couldn't make out much more of the spring town other than it looked like a giant hovering isle teeming with so much natural life Zack couldn't understand how such a thing was possible in the middle of such a sterile land. It was still a good ways into the distance but the sweet scent of flowers and vegetation however was so redolent it was impossible to smell anything else.

"It's amazing" Zack said stupefied.

"Wait till you see it up close" Rose responded.

"Still looks like quite a walk" Zack said, unable to peel his eyes away from the town in fear of it disappearing like an illusion. Rose meanwhile turned her attention to the glowing green sphere in the middle of the platform.

"We don't need to walk" she said as she tapped it with her foot. It seemed to hum softly for a moment before it flared to life, glowing as bright as a freshly lit oil lamp.

"Then how? Fly?" he wondered.

"In a sense, yes" Rose replied, her attention still drawn to the glowing ring.

Zack at first didn't know if she was making a joke at his expense or was remarking another cryptic message but she cut in before he could question her further.

"Its best you watch rather than I explain." She tuned to the Giganto who had remained quiet during the exchange.

"Kongol, if you will?"

The giant man mountain moved towards the ring without a sound. It was large enough to accommodate his girth but only just. Once he stood, both feet planted within the circle his body became encase in an orb the same green as the ring he had stood on and after floating aloft a few seconds it slingshot towards the Ulara with speeds that was blindingly fast.

After the globe dipped towards Ulara where it twinkled out of existence, Zack returned his flabbergasted eyes to the lime disc in the middle of the wrecked platform.

"Should I even bother asking?"

"Winglies were able to create technology that borrowed off or extrapolated their inert magical powers. In the end I think this design is more for convenience sake, instead of drawing on their own power each time they wishes to fly or teleport which could be terribly draining they created small device that stored a part of their magical energy and could be used as a kind of free transit."

"But how can we humans use it?"

"The energy required for the transfer lies in the pod, so anyone can use it as long as they can tap the power. It's quite easy really, it feels peculiar at first, like it did when we were inadvertently teleported across Serdio into Tiberoa, but once you do it a time or two it'll come almost naturally."

Zack looked at the ring cautiously. "I don't like the sounds of this..."

"Unless you wish to walk then I suggest you stand on the pad and give it a try. You'll feel a kind of... gathering of magic, like a soft rain falling on your body. Just relax, focus, and let it do the rest. They're connected point to point you see, this pad and another work in unison so you can't control where it takes you once it begins. In any event it'll be over in a few seconds, so step on and give it a try."

Zack inhaled nervously and did just that; stood on the small glove of green. If flickered and just as Rose explained he felt a kind of foreign matter embrace his body. His initial reaction was to fight it, but closing his eyes and doing his best to focus on his breathing he attempted to work with it instead. What came next was almost indescribable; he felt his body contract, like invisible walls were shrinking around him small and smaller. His body hunched, his knees drawn into his chest like a human ball (although this process was painless) he felt his body lift before it shot off like a cannon ball. He couldn't see where he was going, a sheen of green partitions made that impossible, but the tumbling in his stomach that was somehow close to nausea (or perhaps was it vertigo?) made it obvious wherever he was going he was moving at speeds so high his body wasn't able to adapt.

But as soon as it had began it had ended, the green cacoon faded and his hunched body crashed down lightly on a matching pad in an unfamiliar place, his head spinning his belly still churning. It took a minute or two for the dizziness to completely pass.

When he stood up (he had fallen ungracefully on his backside) Rose was behind him, watching him with bemused interest.

"Not the most… elegant of landings" Rose commented.

Zack was too busy getting his bearings about him to respond, and once he did his attention was captivated by the new sight that was there to greet him. It was otherworldly to say the least, pasty, narrow stone catwalks not much large than Kongol himself fragmented out from the platform they were on like a maze as they ascended and descended the hilly nature of the massive oasis the town was built upon. Below them, far below where giant stone pillars kept the seemingly floating city buoyant, disappearing beneath the calm, crystalline waters while above was dominated by fields of stunning vegetation, flowers and numerous other types of plant life. What was truly amazing was the simplicity of the design, nothing overabundant or excessive, just a labyrinth of thin walkways that spilled into dome like houses that seemed dwarfed by the grasslands and meadows. The houses, while some large the majority were not were adorned with strange small sculptures along with a number of other unknown decorative miscellany. What struck Zack the most though was when compared to the human capitals of Fletz and Basil, Ulara was refined in a perfect balance that was neither shabby nor extravagant, a quality which somehow surprised Zack given his knowledge (albeit limited) of the Wingly species.

_Then what did I expect? _He wondered as he devoured the spring town with his eyes.

"It's rather simple" Zack said finally.

"Indeed, most of the smaller Wingly cities are. If you were expecting something grand and majestic, then the old Wingly capital of Kadessa when it was in its former glory was the town to visit. Kadessa makes even the largest human city appear miniscule by comparison.

Before Zack could ask about the wonders of a city heralded as the Wingly capital the three were interrupted by a trio of what Zack assumed to be three female winglies. They appeared genuinely surprised if Zack's reading of their expressions were accurate.

"Greetings Rose, quite a surprise to see here and... in the flesh." They all bore the Wingly trademark of platinum hair were done up in varying yet stylish patterns, one with long protruding ponytails on both sides of the back of her head, the other platted in a series of interlocking braids that fell down her shoulders and sat neatly on her chest. The third one, this Wingly woman stood to the rear with curious eyes openly upon him, had hair too short to braid or tie down so it hung down the nape of her neck freely. Long dresses of shining silk that typically expanded towards the hem or elaborate combinations of blouses and skirts (Zack didn't know if this quite fit the description, he was by no means an expert in fashion, particularly women's fashion) were worn by these three, adding to the air of complete grace and sophistication. Even their voice, soft, almost melodic in tune appeared of a different level when compared to humans, even those of royalty.

"Myra" Rose responded coolly with a nod. Myra, who wore the long dress and two thin ponytails, swept her eyes across Kongol and then Zack himself, lingering a few seconds before returning to Rose.

"A new visitor, how rare."

Zack stuttered momentarily. "I'm Zack, nice to meet you in your beautiful home."

Myra eyed him narrowly for a moment in a way that was rudely dismissive.

"Myra. Behind me is Blanch" she gestured to the eldest and kindest looking of the three with the falling braids who inclined her head softly. "This here is Alejandra." The short haired girl appeared the youngest, her soft blue eyes regarding the three with unabashed fascination.

"Manners Ally" Myra said a trifle crossly, to which the young Wingly appeared flustered.

"My apologises." Alejandra bowed softly. Although she looked to be the age of a young adult, her voice sounded no older than that of a girl just reaching her teens.

"Forgive her impertinence, she is young and has for the first time laid eyes on non-wingly entities."

Rose glanced at Myra with an arched, questioning eyebrow. A hidden meaning seemed to pass between them, one that Zack couldn't quite understand.

"She is adopted, a wayward child we accepted responsibility of."

"Why is this human so big!?" Alejandra inquired, pointing a finger in the direction of towering Giganto. Kongol's gleaming ashen eyes stared down at her with an expression that was surprisingly compassionate.

"Alejandra..." Myra began with a scolding tone. Myra turned to the Kongol. "I apologise once more, as you can see she is still very susceptible to her curiosity."

"Kongol Giganto, not human" the bronze man mountain responded softly. Despite his restrained voice the young Wingly appeared alarmed by his response.

From above them on the floating arch a vibrant reverberation of soft laughter rang pleasantly around them. They all looked above to see another female Wingly floating above with the same streams of translucent energy propelling her from behind her shoulders. Zack thought it was the most wonderful sound of laughter he had ever heard.

The three Winglies that were standing turned rigid and for a moment Zack thought they might bow or salute the descending woman like soldiers would a general or royalty.

"I knew you hadn't perished Rosie" said the woman as she glided gracefully to her feet in front of her. The three behind her continued to watch her with expressions of utter respect that bordered reverence.

"Charlie" Rose said as she extended her hand. Charlie, the fourth Wingly who had a different air about her than the other three, a kind of soft yet commanding presence, accepted Rose's hand between the two of hers. She was older still than Blanch Zack thought, but she still retained the beautiful image of a person who rather than diminishes with time, somehow grows finer like whine. Her hair, a lighter gray than her younger counterparts was pulled back behind a crusted headband away from her face which beamed with generosity and good will. Zack had no doubt from the distinctive aqua and olive dress that was different even among her own peers along down to the small yet noticeably radiant jewels that sat atop the various rings on her fingers that she was the woman in charge if there was one such a position.

Charlie turned to Alejandra. "Do not be afraid of Kongol young Ally, he is a kind soul if there ever was one."

Taking her word for gospel, the young Wingly shifted boldly close to the towering Giganto. The giant minded this not at all and even hunched down to try and be somewhat level with the girl who was a third of his size which garnered a delighted laugh.

"Be careful" Myra warned but Alejandra wasn't paying attention. Previous caution forgotten in an instant, she was now dancing around him playfully as she bombarded Kongol with question upon questions.

"Do not worry Myra, she will be fine." The woman named Charlie turned her attention towards Rose and Zack once more.

"We do not get many visitors as you can imagine" Charlie said with a smile. Her eyes were resting on Zack now, who felt self conscious under the gaze. "But we are a friendly, even if alienated city and we would extend out welcome all the same. A guest of Rosie is a guest of ours."

"Zack, nice to meet you" he said, extending his hand which Charlie took the same way she had taken Rose's not a few moments before. Zack wasn't surprised to find her caress both warm and inviting.

"Charlie, nice to make your acquaintance."

"Your city is truly wonderful, thank you for your hospitality" Zack said bashfully. This earned a soft chuckle from the elder Wingly.

"He is well mannered" She said, giving a side long look towards Rose. Charming too, reminds me of a certain someone..." Zack, rather than feel insulted at being spoken to in front of in such a manner merely felt embarrassed. Rose on the other hand appeared agitated by the hidden meaning beneath the compliment and lowered her eyes dangerously towards her lifelong companion.

"Charlie..." she warned with an icy stare. Charlie waved it off with another kind hearted chuckle.

"Seems you never change" the Wingly said, mirth still flooding her hazel eyes. But soon that vanished and what replaced it was one of deep sombreness. "Putting that aside, I can only assume you didn't come here merely to catch up."

"No" Rose agreed, eager to move the conversation forward. "I'm not sure how much you're aware of what's happening around the world outside, but another war has broken out across Serdio and Tiberoa. Soon it will engulf Mille Seseau as well."

"We have heard of such news" Charlie agreed with a soft nod. The three women behind her agreed as well as if to add further legitimacy to her claim although in Zack's opinion it was unnecessary. Even upon only just meeting her Zack could see she was a woman of gentle nature and strong morals, deceit didn't seem to fit when measured up against such virtues. "While we may not be a part of the general community at large, we're entirely ignorant of world affairs neither."

Rose nodded. "Usually something trivial like war would not be business I'd find necessary to involve myself in, however matters have complicated. What I do have business with is the man responsible for the war itself. I'm not sure if you know of him, he goes by the name of Wen Eisenhower, currently in possession of the Jade Dragoon Spirit." Rose gave Charlie a brief rundown about the man they thought was once an ally.

"Sorry hun, such a name does not strike any familiarity with me."

Rose knotted her brow together, seemingly disappointed with the lack of information.

"However" Charlie began. "The person you described does fit the description of a man who has roused the interest of our Wingly brethren to the north."

Both Rose and Zack were shocked at this latest revelation. Charlie needed no prompting to explain.

"A person supposedly with great power, the power of the dragons appeared within the Wingly Forest some time ago. I'm not sure how this man managed it, but boasting promises of a new age where Winglies can reclaim their lost position of power as the dominant force within Endiness he was able to receive the support of the Wingly Elders in his conquest for control."

"We were ambushed by a Wingly on our way here" Rose said with a trouble voice. That trouble was mirrored in Charlie's own eyes.

"Not all of them were happy with the agreement of course, and those who weren't came here, we are as we always have been a haven for those who wish to escape the turmoils of the normal world." She gestured towards Alejandra who was still frolicking with the awkward Kongol. "She is one of few young Winglies who have migrated from their homes in the forest as a result. But what was most astounding was the amount Winglies who _were_ offering their allegiances. I'm not as blind to think that some of us won't jump at the first chance to wrest control of the world once more Rose, but he didn't just get the support of a few Winglies, he gained the support of the majority. It wouldn't be unfeasible to say that such a feat would be impossible for a human to attain, grandeurs of supremacy or not"

"Unless he's not human at all" Rose mused.

"Exactly" Charlie said in agreement. "To rally that many of the remaining Winglies left, to risk what few we have by openly declaring war on humans, only a Wingly of great allure could incite such conviction. No one has managed to orchestrate such a thing since Melbu all those years ago..."

"If nothing else he is incredibly charismatic" Zack said, adding his own thoughts to the conversation. "I know firsthand that as dangerous as he is with a sword and magic, he is more so with his tongue."

"The most dangerous weapon of all" Charlie concurred with a wan smile.

"He's also managed to amass a kind of... cross human-Wingly hybrid as well. They're not as powerful as a pure Wingly, which may be why he's also recruited the ones in the forest, but they are considerably stronger than the average foot soldier. "

Charlie appeared deeply troubled. "How is such a thing possible?"

Rose shook her head. "We don't know. The information we received on the subject was from the very man who was coordinating it behind the scenes, so we can't know how much of his information is true, but supposedly assuming he wasn't lying about the origins it was Melbu who originally came up with the blue prints." This both shocked and dismayed Charlie even further.

"Impossible..." Charlie said, looking up towards the darkening skies. "Above all he was a Wingly of pride, he was absolutely adamant about his view on humans as a sub-species. In his eyes to taint the purity of Wingly ancestry with the blood of a race he considered no more than slaves would be beyond profane, it would be outright defile. My brother may have been many horrible things, but I cannot imagine he'd bend on his forthright principal that sparked an entire racial war."

"Melbu was your brother!?" Zack interrupted, unable to hide his surprise.

Rose set him an unhappy stare, as did the Winglies standing behind Charlie, but none of that outrage showed on the face of the woman he directed to, despite way it could easily (and obviously had been by most around him) be interpreted as impudent. Instead all that crossed her face was a sorrow to deep for words.

"As it turns out yes, Melbu Frahma was, and still very much is even in death, as we believe that one's heritage does not cease even they pass from this realm to then next, my younger brother."

"I... didn't mean to be rude. I just had no idea, and was perhaps even more shocked that his sister would turn out to be..." Zack seemed to fumble for the correct word, not liking the fact he had once again applied a blowtorch on himself.

"Not a monster?" Charlie finished, her mournful response somehow softened by a drawn smile. The smile quickly faded and the older Frahma shook her head. "I apologise" she said with a light bow. "That was unfair I know."

"No, the fault is all mine for being overt in my surprise. I just didn't expect the brother of Melbu to be his polar opposite."

"Not many do hun, trust me." The sadness in her eyes had lifted a little, but Zack only now began to truly grasp the depth of the sorrows that would forever haunt this woman. It reminded him very much of the regret that Rose harbours beneath her own frozen set of eyes.

"Regardless" Rose prompted, pushing the conversation on once more. "The fact remains whether it was Melbu's doing or not, that there are half-breeds of soldiers under Wens command as well as full blooded Winglies. Backed up by a powerhouse of a nation in Sandora that is hell bent on retribution for their slain King, this man wields considerable power. But, we managed, at least we think for the moment, to glean his ultimate goal. He wishes to merge the power of all Dragoon Spirits, to transcend both Wingly and human power and become a kind of god."

"It's always power, when you boil right down to it isn't it?" Charlie said unhappily.

Rose nodded. "It is the nature of all races, the one similarity when everything else is different. In any event a merging of dragon souls isn't possible under normal circumstances as you well know, but is it possible under the magic of Winglies?"

"I wouldn't think so, but there are powerful magics that even I am unaware of, so I can't say for certain. Possible? Yes, probable? I would think not."

Judging by the scowl on Rose's face, this wasn't the answer she was hoping for. A heavy silence descended upon the group, none seemingly willing to break it.

"I'm sorry I can't be of more help dear" Charlie said finally. Rose waved it off with a flick of her hand.

"In the end I knew if we want answers we would need to find them ourselves. We came here for another reason however. We believe Wen intends to attack Deningrad, so we were hoping you could offer us passage to Mille Seseau, if it is not beyond your scope of power."

Zack hoped to hell it wasn't, otherwise this was all a wasted journey.

Charlie appeared to ponder on this for a few moments. "We can try our best. As luck would have it, the decline in our magic has been reversed as of late. It seems to have something to do with the stirring of those in the Wingly forest. In any event had you asked this even a few days ago I'd have thought such a task impossible, as you well know our rapid magical deterioration was threatening to extinct our race entirely."

While Rose didn't voice it out loud, Zack thought he could read exactly what she was thinking.

_Lucky in this instance, really unlucky for us in the future if or when we have to face said Winglies. _

"Do all you can do, we will do the rest" Rose assured.

"However I would urge you all remain with us the night. We can offer food, a bath, and above all a good night's rest as well as a restock of necessary provisions. You all look well worn if I may say so, and by the sounds of it the journey in front of you is still very tough so it'd be wise to take the chance to rejuvenate while you can."

Both Rose and Zack agreed mutually at the offer.

_A bath, by gods I never thought I'd look forward to one so much in my life! _

With most of the discussions concluded the small crowd that had gathered began to disperse, the three wingly women following a young Alejandra who was dragging with her a certain giant, chattering happily about the plants she wanted him to see. Kongol made no verbal complain, only allowed himself to be hauled along with the child's callow excitement, and so all that remained was Zack, Rose and Charlie. The sun had disappeared now, the afternoon fading into twilight, and as the three of them stared off into the distance Rose spoke again, apparently still eager to get something else off her mind.

"Do I have any further use for this?" Rose questioned, removing the choker and holding it eye level. Charlie smiled a radiating grin at this.

"Rosie honey, I think you already know the answer to that question."

Rose fell silent, seeming to get lost in the golden glow of the accessory, before he eyes shifted to the darkened sheen of splayed stars before fixing it her choker once more. With a heavy sigh she tossed it aside, the gleaming objected hurling over the pale brick plateau where it would be engulfed in the dark deeps below before being taken to parts unknown by the purified riverbed underneath.

"Wow, what's up with that?" Zack asked taken aback by the seemingly whimsical decision. "Isn't that the source of your agelessness? Is throwing away such an artifact a wise idea?"

Rose shrugged, her eyes appearing somehow both relieved and woeful.

"It is no longer necessary I don't think. That part of my past is over; I have no need for an extended life anymore." She faced Charlie who met her with that same warm smile. "It's strange I feel somehow... lighter, like a burden has been lifted, at least a little."

Charlie clapped her long time friend on the shoulder and nodded. "Now let us retreat indoors before we all freeze hm? While an old chapter of your life may now be complete, a new one is waiting just around the corner and it wouldn't be prudent to face it with both a weary body and mind."

Then another one of those knowing looks passed between them, one that at that time Zack himself didn't understand, but would so in the future and only then would he realise the true gravity of the situation that had just transpired.

* * *

_It's now or never _Amika thought to herself warily as she fumbled with a small piece of copper wire that she managed to smuggle into the prison within the roof of her mouth. They had shackled both her hands and legs, which of course wasn't a problem, she still had enough mobility within the confines to manoeuvre the makeshift lock pick and freeing herself wouldn't be an issue. The iron door however would be as it couldn't be picked; they were opened not by a typical locking mechanism but a totally different one all together, lacking any latches or keyholes from her side of the access. After all, Hellena wasn't renowned as being the most fortified prison without good reason, and the amount of jail breaks Hellena suffered since its inception could literally be counted on one hand.

The rest of her typical run of the mill cell that populated all but the highest level of the prison where personal containment rooms were held for the most dangerous of prisoners (the doors there were even imbued with magic) was nothing but small reinforced stone walls and floors, the cell no larger than the size of a small dining room with nothing but an old broken bed (although it was more a broken wooden base with what looked to be nothing more than a stack of hay atop it), a shoddy toilet and a barred window facing the crashing water appeared to somehow seethe far below. Despite the good fortune she felt her pride stung by the fact they didn't warrant her threatening enough to be put in a maximum security cell, after all she was the leader of the covert special forces, and while it was plausible enough that the grunts within Hellena Prison weren't privy on her old title (despite being a part of Sandora they dealt with the capital or anywhere else very little, as far as the wardens were concerned nothing existed outside their little Hellena bubble) Wen certainly was. He was underestimating her a great deal, but this of course played to her advantage. Had she been thrown into one of the maximum security facilities, her chances of escape would be practically non-existent.

Since they incinerated her nearly three days prior she had not dealt with a single soul outside the one that periodically came to offer pasty foods and tainted water. She suspected that was a specific order as well, likely as not Wen himself would want to deal with her.

She could have broken out immediately of course, but the wardens were on high alert since her unexpected surrender. They weren't entirely stupid and so for the first two days they cycled though at least four guards if her hearing was correct (the solid door, lacking bars made it impossible for her to see out), but now it petered down to only two. She would have liked to have made her move sooner, but as much as she hated being held within a room so disgusting that rats even seemed to stay away from, to make a rash or impatient move would be a mistake so grave that she wouldn't have to worry about biding her time in the filthiest prison she had ever seen or anything else for that matter. While they were on their best behaviour for now, Amika had no doubt that if given even the slightest chance; they would cut her down where she stood, so she could ill afford to give them such an opportunity.

But it was late; security had loosened (as it often did as the nights wore on) and she couldn't leave her move _too _late. She would have to do so before Wen attended her directly, as once he got what he wanted (or assumed he never would) she would be quickly disposed of, that she had no doubt. But the first task was opening the door, and she knew just how she was going t manage it.

Three times a day and night they would enter and give her a paltry sum of food and water. The door had a horizontal latch towards the upper half that could be pulled back like a shutter from the outside to allow the wardens to peer in, but it wasn't big enough to toss in rations and water. To do that they had to enter the cell themselves. This occurred twice during the day and one at night (early morning, early afternoon and late at night) and what had once been three or four very suspicious guards had tapered to two by mid her third day. They had well and truly considered her a surrendered prisoner with no thoughts of escape or debauchery.

_And I made it so convincing _she thought proudly, claiming in earnest that she had come to face the horrible sins that shame her very soul. She had now managed to shake the shackles that bound her hands at her front, and now worked on the ones at her ankles. But she would only unshackle one binding on her leg, leaving it to hang loosely across her ankle in an effort to keep up the illusion she was still chained, a more than necessary undertaking if she were to conjure any kind of jail break. If her judgment of time was in anyway accurate then time was running short, her final meal of the evening would be coming to her soon.

And so she waited, using the small time she had left to reflect on happier times.

* * *

The sound of a brief knock followed by the familiar slide of the long spy latch told Amika what she already knew: Her meal had arrived.

"Turn to the-" the warden, face hidden beneath a heavy gold helm save for a small gap between the eyes halted himself from completing the routine order. "Oh, seems you've become accustomed to our ways already" he said, his tone conveying a bored kind of disappointment. Amika had already turned the front of her body towards the brick wall at the opposite end of the cell; hands outstretched her head bowed as per the usual custom the wardens made sure she abided by if she wished to be fed. The disappointment of course stemmed from the fact they were almost pleading for her to try something, anything that would allow them to get physical with her. Her hands were obscured by her body so unless they came right up to inspect she didn't think they would notice the lack of shackles on her wrists, but her legs, one manacle right and firm, the other loose and hanging awkwardly could give her away if they paid it enough attention.

The door swung open and two guards, covered head to toe with gold mail, a kind of proud insignia etched on the centre of the breastplate, long lances their weapons of choice.

The first one carried a tray of food and a cup of water with the hand not holding his pike. He dropped more than placed the contents on the floor.

"Your hospitality has been most gracious" Amika said, head still facing the unmoving wall.

The wardens turned in her direction.

"Don't know if you think yer' being funny or just plain stupid, but I'd be careful what comes out of that mouth if I were you."

Amika chuckled at this. "I know you boys can't hurt me, not before I've seen whatever whelp is in charge of grunts like you, so your threat is meaningless."

One of the wardens bristled before taking a few steps towards her.

"Is that what you think eh?" he said, the tip of his spear resting on the small of her back. "Do you really wish to test that out?"

Amika heard the second guard panic, attempting to calm his more hot-headed companion. What came was the sound of a rough strike followed by a brief rebuke; apparently the hot headed one was not willing to concede.

"Yeah" he said, turning his attention back to Amika. His tempered seemed to have settled after all, and this gave Amika momentary hesitation. She wanted the wardens as flustered as possible. "Ye may not be able to harm you without due cause... _yet. _But, in the interest of safety there was no order that I couldn't make sure you're clean, if you know what I mean. After all this attitude of yours has made me awfully 'spicious."

The top of the blade was withdrawn as he drew close. "A full cavity search is most certainly in order I'd say, what do you think?"

"I would have to agree" the second guard conceded in earnest, his earlier trepidation vanishing.

Amika smiled inwardly. They were easier to antagonise than she had imagined.

"Not so mouthy anymore hm?" the warden tugged her long black shirt that covered her torso and arms, feeling in utter control. That would shortly change.

He took a step closer, perhaps intending to lean into her face, but Amika had already made her move. To the warden she was nothing more than a blur as she moved behind him, one leg shackle still attached to her left leg swinging behind her like a sling shot. Her hands, long and as quick as a cat's swiped the small dagger that hung from the hip, a measure of security should they be disarmed or in need of a smaller weapon but by then it was all too late. All that the nearest warden would remember before passing into the next world was a sharp yet somehow distant pain as the dagger he had never used in his life pierced his heart from behind. He also realised with faint awareness that she either had to be incredibly lucky or amazingly skilful. A thrust between the small vulnerable spots where the plate didn't completely overlap each other took a kind of precision that was almost superhuman.

The second warden, the one closest to the door that now stood ajar registered this a great deal quicker than his dying comrade, but registering and then reacting were to different things. A combination of shock and disbelief left him mind blank for a few long dangerous moments. Amika knew this and struck accordingly, the knife trust towards the top of his neck where his helmet didn't protect. The stunned guard could register this too, but could still do nothing about it. It was as if he was watching in from someone else's perspective and was thus unable to make any direct interference. The blade slipped into his neck smoothly, a sign of someone who has done something similar so many times it had a kind of art to it.

Supporting the guard's body as it slumped into the nearby wall, Amika took the dagger and held it close, poised to use it at a moment's notice. There was no point in hiding her victims, if all went well she and hopefully and important guest or two would be long gone from this ghastly excuse for a prison.

Moving past the door she began the most important phase of the plan. She was going to check every cell for Dart and any companions that may or may not be held here. She just wished she could see that smug face of Wen's drop into one of annoyance and frustration when he finds out.

As it would turn out she wouldn't have to wait long.

Each circular floor of the prison were identical, four cells aside with an exit between, everything a bleak brick and stone as a small gap circled the inside, bridged by wooden slats that looked far too fragile for the drop it would lead to if it were to collapse. To her surprise no other guards were patrolling as far as she could tell. A quick examination of the floor also told her there were no other prisoners being kept either.

If Dart was here, he would be on the highest floor were they keep the most hazardous captives as she had suspected all along. Getting to higher levels meant utilising the wooden plank pulleys that worked as a kind of rope elevator, tied across a turning machine that rotates at the press of a button. But they were loud and to use them would be more or less broadcasting a giant light beacon to her position.

_If only I had the rest of my equipment, then I could – _the previously silent floor of the prison roared to life as frenzied footsteps poured in from the single opening behind her. At least a dozen full plated guards with their weapons out and ready boxed her from every angle, quickly evaporating any chance at escape.

"So, just as he said she managed to escape. Took yer' a while, but sure enough here you are, free of your bindings" A harsh voice said from behind the wall of coiled soldiers. He pushed past them roughly, his towering statue and considerable girth making the job easy, and what stood only inches from her own dwarfed frame in comparison was more a creature than man. A snarling mutated face disfigured by burns and scars as well as god knows what else peered at her with small beady hawk like eyes that sat somehow askew, almost hidden behind the disjointed valleys of his cheeks and forehead. No eyebrows or hair sat atop his marred features which might have helped unfortunate state of his visage, just a scaly dome where hair may have once grown. He wore no armour but simply rags of red that may have well once been another colour before it was drowned in a sea of blood. Amika didn't need to guess who her visitor was; she knew the moment she spotted him who he was and the kind of trouble she was now in.

A huge studded wooden club easily the size of Amika herself was swung over his right shoulder bouncing almost weightlessly with each stride.

"Raug, Fruegel's successor I take it?" Amika responded with narrow, calculating eyes. Staring into the head warden's was an exercise in fortitude, the almost black, soulless nature of them spoke of terrifying malice and cruelty.

"Better remember it girl, it'll be etched into your very core by the time I've had my fun with yer.'" Amika arched her back, akin to a cat ready to pounce. This appeared to worry Raug not at all.

"However, despite my reputation lady, I can be fair. We know you didn't give yerself up voluntarily for no reason. We also know that you have information on the whereabouts of your little friends who helped set up the coup. So if you're willin' to spill the beans, then I'll make your death both quick and painless."

"We?" Amika questioned shrewdly.

"Glad yer asked!" the head warden said with a horrifying grin. "Before I have my fun with yer one way or t'other I have someone who'll be wanting to see ya."

Amika thought she already knew who it was. "Wen."

"Glad you two are already acquainted" Raug said before be brought the club down with surprising quickness. The wood was solid enough, but the protruding studs that elevated out of the rounded end that were the size of large stones made the impact that much more bone crushing. He struck her right arm just above the elbow where she was holding the knife and the following crack along with her subsequent wail of pain was ear piercing against the otherwise soundless backdrop. Amika dropped her only weapon and fell to her knees, her left arm nursing her surely broken other limb. Her vision blurred as tears of suppressed pain began to materialise against her will.

Raug turned his back and moved towards the exit laughing happily with his latest accomplishment. "Herd her to the top floor where we'll be waiting."

Hand grabbed her roughly under her arms and began to push and drag her towards the exit, her arm pulsating with every shove. She attempted for a short time to fight it, but with the overwhelming numbers along with pain so sharp it was threatening to blot out all else, it was an impossible battle. Resigning herself for the second time to capture, Amika allowed herself to be dragged towards one of the many lift platforms. Raug along with a handful of other soldiers stood on the wooden barge that appeared no larger than the cell she was not so long ago contained in, and with a pull of a lever the rope began to pull as it wound over series of reels like that of a sighing rod. Amika was left hunched over her knees her broken arm throbbing harder than ever.

Higher and higher they went, ascending the seemingly endless apex of the towering structure. Once it came to an abrupt halt Amika was funnelled out of the barge and was dragged up a series of long, winding sandstone steps that ended at a large wooden doorway, rays of bright light permeating the small gap beneath. Raug, who was leading the thinned band of wardens pushed it open with one huge arm and hailed his commander who stood expectantly between two of the brightly burning braziers. One of the wardens gave her a hard shove once she drew close enough and consequently she was send unexpectedly hurtling towards the cold hard floor of the prisons highest level. It was the peak in every sense, no ceiling or roof, just a round level of brick and stone under an endless sky. The edges of the parameter were sectored off somewhat by outcroppings that acted as a small mini-wall, although they were no larger than a couple of feet and would likely do nothing to prevent one from toppling over if they lost their footing at a critical time. At the other end of the circular large platform where Wen was standing silently between a row of braziers was a large stone ornamental statue of sorts that, a giant mouth of a kind of night demon if Amika had to guess in her strained state. In the end it didn't matter, what was obvious to her even now was that this place was a kind of ceremonial platform of sorts, perhaps an elaborate place for executions if she had to guess by the pit of decaying bones.

Moving to her full height, as hard as it was, Amika met Wen's unreadable gaze with one of overpower contempt and hatred. Her green eyes blazed into the eyes of the person who killed her King, and with that rise in fury she was able to at least for the time being put the pain of her broken arm in the back of her mind. All that occupied her mind now was a brining redness along with the faint belief that she could end it all now. She might die, but she was going to take this son of a bitch with her by the gods.

"Head of the Sandorian Special Forces branch, Amika Rains is it not?" His blank expression changed, his bushy beared curving upwards into a smile.

"And Wen, a King slayer" Amika returned bitterly.

"Regrettable, but in the end he brought his fate upon himself, just as you will yours if you choose not to cooperate."

"Let's not pretend you don't intend to simply squeeze me of information before disposing of me." While Amika's mouth moved with idle back and fourth banter, her eyes and mind were doing something else entirely. Sensing opportunity beckon, Amika's eyes and mind were already taking not of every particular in her surroundings, how many people, how close, what could be used as a weapon both for her and against her along with a with a myriad of other just as important thoughts and observation that may or may not prove vital. It was done without actually having to be conscious of it, her training, something so ingrained it wasn't really training but something done as automatic as breathing. Doing all this while stalling with words, Amika waited for the opening to strike. She may only have one usable arm, but she was still very much dangerous, perhaps even more so than usual now that she was desperate like that of a wounded animal.

"My dear you have it all wrong!" Wen flared his hands out in a grand gesture from beneath his green robe to accentuate his claim.

"I have only killed so far when I have had too! After all did I not allow Rose and Zack to escape? Did I not allow _you _to escape? Surely you didn't think your presence from atop the foyer went without notice? I have once more stabilized Kazas and subsequently the entire Sandorian region. Your King, dear soldier was inept, filling himself and his own men with riches while those outside wilted and died like a starved plant. I will restore Sandora to its previous glory! All those under me will always have a house, food and water. All I ask in return Amika is fealty, the will to fight for me when the time comes. Give me that, and you and all your countrymen will live in peace, bereft of horrors of poverty and abandonment that has shadowed this great nation far too long."

Amika had to give him one thing: He was exceptionally silver tongued. From the way he spoke right down to the expressions on his face would make her think if she didn't know better that he was deadly serious in his claims despite the obvious contrary.

"I will not swear my alliance to anyone who doesn't rightly deserve it. Inept King or not, you had no right to kill him and take his place as self appointed leader, that is up to us and us alone."

Still her mind was scrambling, slowly formulating a plan, a way that she could arm herself and kill him before the rest of the guards had time to notice. It wasn't easy, the closest person to her besides Wen was Raug, who was a few yards away at least and that was being optimistic. By the time she reached him to try and attain a weapon it would be too late, and attempting to disarm Wen would be even more foolish. He may be arrogant and even a little complacent given her injury, but he wasn't stupid. He would be expecting a headstrong approach, and would likely have her beat before she could even hope to draw the weapon he used to pierce even the mighty Dragoon Armour.

"I was your people that elected me as caretaker commander to begin with."

This information shocked her and disorientated her thoughts for a few moments."Impossible, barely anyone even knows of your existence."

Another soft smile. "But they do. They all knew he had an advisor, at least the people that matter. With a nice speech they were more than accepting at my offer to not only lead but bring them into a new era of prosperity."

_I can't disarm him, but maybe I can use the precipices to my advantage. Even if I have to follow over, I can likely tackle him over the edge and send us both to hell._

Suddenly Wen's attention was placed on Raug.

"Drop a dagger at her feet" Wen said harshly, his warm eyes and smile turning to stone instantly.

"But why... sir?"

"Don't ask just do!" Wen roared, and for a man who a small time ago appeared predatory in every sense of the word was reduced to a domesticated house animal within the presence of a man who visually had none of the same intimidating features.

_Except that was wrong _Amika thought. _While he may appear normal on the outside, what's inside was worse than anything Raug could ever amount to, and he knew it. He, like everyone else is afraid. _

The head warden fumbled for his knife and moved towards Amika, dropping the weapon at her feet as instructed. When Raug looked questioningly towards Wen the man in the green robe simply waved him away with a flick of his hand.

His expression once more turning genial, Wen gestured at the long dagger that was placed at her feet.

"I know you plan to make some sort of effort to assault me; I can see it in your face and eyes. So how about this: I'll give you the chance to try, unhindered by outside interference. If you win you obviously succeed in killing me. But if you don't..." His hospitable grin turned ghastly. "You'll surrender what information you have about Rose and Zack. Sounds fair doesn't it?"

_Fair? Couldn't be further from it. _She knew she had no chance of going head to head with him under optimal circumstances let alone with a single hand. But, with the possibility of only having to send him spiralling off the peak of the prison that was hundreds of meters into the air, there was a small possibility. And small was all she needed. Even if he could transform into one of the mythical Dragoon Knights, by the time he hopefully realised he was falling to his death it would be far too late to transform. She had only seen the change from human to Dragoon once, but she knew it wasn't an instantaneous change. At least she hoped.

Amika made her move. Crouching low she grasped the handle of the dagger with her strong hand and sprung forward as hard and fast as her coiled legs would allow her. Wen watched this but barely moved at all save for a small straightening of his posture as she dipped for the weapon. Closing the most of the distance with one long stride of her legs she drew the glinting knife to chest height, as if to try and lance her foe, but of course this was all just an attempt to bait. When she was only a few feet away she propelled the dagger-turned-projectile towards Wen's face with considerable velocity. It was never intended to connect, and of course it didn't, although the way in which he reacted surprised her a little. Instead of moving out of the missiles trajectory he let the hilt of the blade ledge between his index and middle fingers that had arched back like claws. His considerable reaction time and dexterity allowed this to happen without the blade itself touching his fingers, but the diversion proved more distracting then she had hoped. Bending down at mid height once more, she crashed into his lower abdomen and tackled him forward towards the edge of Helena's highest point. Good shoulder buried into Wen's waist as he strong legs propelled her forward like a charging bull, Amika pushed her adversary perilously close to the edge of the chasm. All it would take is one final grunt effort to forced the back of his legs to catch on the small parameter outcropping and he would go toppling over.

Suddenly she felt like she was pushing against a solid brick wall. She registered the sound of something metallic hitting the ground behind them both somewhere in the back of her mind, but the momentum she had managed so hard to build came to a sudden and screeching halt. What came next was an explosion of pain from her battered right arm as Wen's hand wrapped around it like a vice.

"Close" Wen admitted. Amika, now being forced to her full height could see how he managed to so easily turn the tide of her forward thrust. Placing one of his legs behind him against the small brick blockade for both leverage and support, Wen had managed through sheer strength to halt her charge almost instantly.

Then in haze of unfocused motion Wen used the hand not already crushing her broken arm to grab her by the neck and pivot her one hundred and eighty-degrees. Before she was aware of what was going on she was dangling over the endless gulf, Wen now her only lifeline. His devious smile returned.

"But it appears that I have won our little skirmish."

Amika could only kick fruitlessly into the air as the pain continued to amplify; quickly sapping what remained of her waning strength.

"Now I want locations, plans, everything you know about my little busy little bees. And trust me; I know you've been in contact with them, so denying it will do you no good."

Amika could only respond in shrikes of sharp agony. This only added to Wen's growing delight. When it became apparent groaning was all she was going to do however his face hardened as he applied more pressure to both her throat and arm.

"Speak up now" he growled.

Amika, whose consciousness of the dual assault of both pain and deprived oxygen felt her consciousness quickly fade. And she welcomed it, after all she had failed to bring about his promised death and the pain was amounting to a point she thought death was a welcome release.

But something a small glimmer, a glistening of something unrecognisable broke through the fog of her fading vision. At first she wasn't sure what it was, but with some persistence and strained focus she could make out what it was.

The dagger. Wen must have dropped it when she attempted to tackle him off the edge. It remained on the edge of the barrier she was dangling near, just within reach.

"I can do this all night you know, so to save yourself the torment I suggest you start telling me what I want to hear. You owe this people nothing good soldier, and know that if it were the other way around they would sell you out as well if it meant furthering their own agendas."

She could grab it perhaps, if she was lucky, but then what? She doubted she had the strength to lung for any kind of dedicated attack. She was weak, so incredibly weak, and was there any point in struggling any further?

Wen let out an uncharacteristic grunt of withheld frustration "Do what your pathetic King couldn't and make yourself useful!"

Something inside her at the final insult to the man she had served and admired for so long cracked, then shattered. A white wash of surging emotion that clouded all others gave her the energy for one final burst of motion. Both hands clasping the outstretched forearm of her aggressor, she managed to rock her body forward just enough to allow momentum to carry her towards the object of her fixation. Good hand extending forward Amika managed to clutch the handle of the knife, but a combination of dull pain and asphyxiation gave her momentary trouble. She thought for one horrifying moment that she would fumble, allowing the weapon along with her only chance to inflict at least some degree of damage to the man she held so much contempt, but her determination, at least for the moment won out. She turned the dagger so the blade was facing downwards as she drew it above her head and stabbed it into the Wen's wrist as hard as the fading strength of one arm would allow. In her mind this all seemed to take an eternity and she was somehow sure Wen would have thrown her off the chasm before she could complete the manoeuvre, but in reality this took all of about two seconds. Wen's reflexes were fast, superhumanly so, but in his over confidence he had lapsed in concentration, believing her to be in no more position to be a threat than that of a dying animal. The blade was as sharp as Amika had hoped, perhaps even more so, and the razor edge pushed through the top of Wen's robe and the base of his wrist all the way through the bottom where it wedged itself around half of its length. Wen cried a wail of surprise more than pain, he hadn't even registered pain but that would come shortly, and his reflexive action was to let go of his captor. He did just that, releasing the hold on her throat, but Amika was already a step ahead. As much as it pained her to even move her wrecked arm, she managed to draw it high enough to get a firm grip on the knife blade that was protruding out the bottom half of his arm. The act sliced her hand, but that pain was periphery compared to the aching beacon that radiated out of her arm and before Wen could withdraw his hand, with both of hers wrapped around both ends of the knife she managed a sharp jerk clockwise. This too happened in a matter of seconds, and with Amika's detailed knowledge of the human anatomy she knew the weakest point of any limb. While she had managed to sever skin, tissue, muscle and perhaps a couple of arteries if she wanted to sever the hand off entirely she would need to tear through the bone that glued it together. With a quick wrench in a circular motion akin to a person circulating the handle of a doorknob, aided with the pressure of downwards thrust as her body began its freefall, Amika levered the weapon enough to slice off his hand completely. It fell beside her as she tumbled downwards, Wen's agonising and shocked screams a delightful melody to her ears as he and the rounded platform that encompassed the roof of the prison grew smaller and smaller.

From then, the remaining seconds of the proud ex-commander of Sandora's special Task Force Unit proceeded in a kind of slow motion blur. Pain engulfed her body as the velocity at which she fell felt like the force of a gale was pressing against her body and injured arm, but her mind, no longer seeming to care, drifted to not of the memory of her King which she was sure would be her final thoughts when she considered the very real possibility of her death, but instead it turned to the fleeting image of the eastern forest that spanned further north-east towards the broken husk of Seles, and how she would never get the chance to explore it and many other splendours she had missed during her life of fierce servitude. Her momentary reflection on her life was filled not with the peace and acceptance she thought she always had, but instead of regret and great longing.

Everything turned black as her battered body met the soft waves of the ocean, although there was nothing soft about the impact it made as she fell from such a height it may as well have been brick and stone. Her fatality was instant, quickly reliving her of all her megrims and yearnings, and with it came the end to a woman who by unfortunate and in some ways tragic circumstances forced her away from a life that could have been both fulfilling as well as wholesome.


	20. Chapter 20: Out of the Frying Pan

**Chapter 20: Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Freezer**

A sudden chill swept through Rose that iced her to her very core. It wasn't the kind of shiver that was expected from the sub-zero temperature around them, although that was still a problem, but instead it was a chill that seemed to pass into her soul.

_Something is amiss _she thought with a strange kind of certainty. But as to exactly what that feeling of wrongness pertained she wasn't quite sure. It was an ominous feeling indeed.

"Cold, even with our coats" Zack said as he wrapped himself tighter within his fur drape that covered him to his shins. Charlie had been kind enough to not only restock food rations and water but also offer thick shirts and cloaks as well to help ward off the chilly climate of the northern province of Mille Seseau. It helped, but not as much as Zack would have liked, the snow flaked winds still cut through the bulky hide from which the cloaks were made off as if they were as thin as bark.

"It takes time to adapt to the coldness" Rose agreed, and while she didn't openly show it she too had trouble fighting the icy nature of the region. It was fall, and thus the coldest Mille Seseau would get during its yearly cycle, and while it was always frigid in nature even during the peak of summer, at best it changed from snowy to mildly icy, thick snow being replaced by a sheet of white soft ice. But there were no simple paths of frosted grass for them, any greenery that may have once been present on the ground was covered many inches dense yet soft snow, which made travelling as difficult as it was in the sinking sand of the desert in the Death Frontier. Above them towered many Evergreen and Maple trees, flora which had many millions of years to adjust to the ever falling snow and subsequently thrived on it. Small slithers of patchy greenery still escaped the small sections not totally caked in ice, but they were dwarfed in comparison to the areas that were. Scanning the immediate region in its entirety left you with a kind of hollow bleakness as you tried to spot anything else but the colour of frosted white.

"We're in the Evergreen Forest, a forest that spans pretty good portion of the entire county. It's very easy to get lost in such a harsh wilderness due to its enormity, but judging by the snow peaks yonder" Rose paused as she pointed what had to be north as only the northern parameter actually had mountains lining the outside. "We're not too far from Deningrad."

"In that case the Winglies did a good job in getting us close" Zack said happily. His gazed turned towards the skies to the sun over head that too seemed to somehow lose itself in the endless expanse of white. "But a queer name for a forest that is hardly green let alone ever green isn't it?"

"I believe it's due to the fact that Evergreen trees are what predominantly grow in the area" Rose corrected distractedly. Charlie and her brigade of helpers made well on their word to send them as close to Deningrad as they could via magic, and if her judgment of distance was in any way correct they got admirably close, but Rose still couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. It wasn't just the news about the fact Wen had also assembled a small army of capable Winglies under his banner or the fact that he himself may be one, something about their entire current objective felt somehow wrong.

_Are we simply playing into Wen's hands? Merely leading him towards Miranda and another Dragoon Spirit?_

"Strange" Zack said, scattering Rose's internal battle as they trudged towards the looming mountain ridges in the distance. "I've never been so far away from home. I mean I've never step foot into the Valley of Corrupted Gravity or the Death Frontier for that matter, but the knowledge that those lands were next door to the ones I grew up in made it seem somehow less of a leap. Now if it feels like I'm in a totally different world."

"Homesick?" Rose asked idly, although her mind wasn't really on the subject at hand but still on things that may or may not await them in the future.

"No, not particularly just… uneasy being in a land so foreign."

Rose nodded but said nothing.

"I suppose this means nothing to someone who had to abandon their own hometown at much a young age" Zack continued to muse.

Rose paused a moment, deliberating on whether or not to reply, to open up. On this rare occasion she chose not to withdraw.

"I'm not sure where I was born or what my homeland is. During my childhood humans lived under the rule of Winglies, as slaves and as such we had no cities of our own. Most likely I was birthed in some sort of Wingly city, although which one I couldn't tell you. My earliest memories in that regard are serving as one of many house keepers in a royal residence within Kadessa."

Zack took a while to respond, yet when instead of his usual plea for sympathy or apologetic remorse for making her reveal such a memory he only probed her further. For some reason this pleased her a little.

_In the end I'm not as averse to talking about myself and my past as I make out _the truest part of her mind reminded.

"How old where you then?"

"It was such a long time ago I can't really be accurate but around seven or eight perhaps? Maybe as old as eleven or twelve? In any event it was where I met Zeig, who was also an orphaned slave like myself. Eventually we broke out together and fled into the dangerous wilderness where we lost what little remained of our innocence and became unknowing puppets to fate."

"Is that how you and Zeig fell in love?"

When Rose turned to him he had the look of someone who was apprehensive but also resolute.

"No, we separated after a time and wouldn't rejoin until much later when I had become a Dragoon Warrior."

"Speaking of, how did you manage to find your Dragoon Spirit? Was yours inherited like mine?"

"I think that will be a tale best left for another time. I have shared enough about my past for the time being and think we best cast our mind forwards toward what may lie ahead. An imminent war may be one thing, but certainly not the only looming possible threat."

Zack agreed but contrary to what they agreed on they spent the rest of their journey in silence.

* * *

"So that's the infamous Crystal Palace eh?" Zack commented. Rose nodded.

"It is run by a Queen, aided by her three Sacred Sisters. One of the sisters ventured with us late in our journey to help destroy Frahma. She is still currently in possession of the White Silver Dragoon Spirit" Rose explained.

"Sir, do you fare any better?"

Wen, eyes glazed in way that made him appear more crazed than a person who had just lost a limb and was on the verge of unconsciousness glared at Raug with a look of dangerous ferocity. So furious in fact that Raug stepped back a couple of paces with a look of open panic. Wen then shifted his attention back to his outstretched injured stump that not too long ago was once his left hand. Two Winglies had gathered around him, holding his arm and humming soft tunes of weaving magic, the curative effects instant and relieving. The bleeding had finally stopped, his wound sealed shut by cauterization, a metal plate the size of two of his hands heated till it glowed an orange red. The severing of his hand had been painful to be true, more painful then he'd care, but the dual effects of shock as well as hacked nerve endings made the pain bearable if only just. The application of heat to shut his hemorrhaging stub had been the most painful process he had ever endured, and if not for the aid of magic that managed to dampen his pain receptors to the point of almost non-existence, he thought he'd have thrown himself over the prison's pinnacle to seek reprieve, even if it meant death.

Slumping against the giant demonic statue that towered many feet atop the execution circle, Wen did all he could to focus his mind in an attempt to rip it away from the unpleasant pulses of pain that still throbbed past the numbing magic. A wound this severe meant that the pain couldn't be blocked entirely yet in some ways he was a little glad. Some pain was okay, as it kept him from slipping into the brink of oblivion. He could ill afford to take the sidelines when so much still had to be done.

"We've healed it as best we can. It shouldn't bleed nor become infectious, but it's still going to be fragile and will take time before the pain will die out entirely. What is more worrisome is the toll it has taken on your body, it's amazing your even conscious, let alone lucid" said one of the male Winglies attending the healing duties.

"Then that is all I ask" Wen said weakly. The two healers exchanged nervous glances.

"We will remain by your side for a few days all the same, in case you need medical treatment once more."

Wen gave a single nod.

"We can still try 'n locate your hand" Raug added, feeling brave once more. Wen shook his head.

"There's no point, it's lost within the cape waters below. Even if it were locatable, by now the hand useless, it's beyond preservation."

Raug cast Wen an uncertain look, which he caught despite his body and mind teetering between awareness and cataleptic.

"I may only have one arm, but it will be more than enough. If you have any doubts, then I have no problem demonstrating that fact to you." Wen glowered once more, a look that was much more bark than any real bite. The Winglies would have known it, and if Raug had any real insight he too would have realized it a mere bluff, but the head warden whose talents lay in torture and cruelty rather than brain power was as easily fooled as a young child. Apologizing profusely Raug made a point of emphasizing his conviction in his faith for his superior.

A third Wingly, one who was dressed not in adorned silk robes of decoration but rather battle raiment's full of Wingly insignias of old that dated back to the Dragon Campaign appeared from the steps that descended back down to the prisons lower levels. he had the air of a commander about him, and strode towards Wen with brisk, purposeful steps. Even for a Wingly he was a giant, dwarfing Wen's own size who was considered tall by almost any race. Violet eyes of steely determination shone brightly from under his mop of unruly silver hair.

"Sir" he acknowledge with a slight bow of his head. "I've just been informed of your accident... I'm sorry to hear such a lowly woman has cost you so much." His tone was sincere, at least on the surface, but Wen thought he could detect a note of scorn underneath.

_Perhaps I'm just hearing things in my weakened state. _But Wen didn't believe that was it at all.

"It was carelessness on my part to be sure, but even the most lowly creature can turn dangerous when desperate, you of all people should know that."

The general of the Wingly army was gripped by a moment of resentment at the reminder that his once glorious race lost their domination to such lowly creatures, but he quickly hid it back under a stern look of apathy. "I mean no disrespect" he said softly, turning more diplomatic.

Wen sighed. "Nor I, let us pen it both down to the recent stresses shall we? In any event while I was unable to squeeze the information I would have liked out of the woman it matters not, we will continue with the plan. Once we wrest control of Deningrad we'll have control of all three major continents. Then it's just a matter of tracking down the mice."

"The army in Mille Seseau is ready and mobile sir, all we require is your command."

"Excellent" Wen said through a pained snarl. "But do not attack them yet, for myself and another important guest wish to be present for the proceedings as well."

The Wingly general Issard for a brief moment appeared nervous.

"You mean him?"

"Yes" Wen agreed forcing a smile. "He wishes to get reacquainted with Rose after all. I'd say their reunion has been more than well overdue." he turned squarely at the towering Issard. "Move the attack force as close to Deningrad as you can without being seen. Then await my command. But be ready, the time to strike is very near my good general."

Issard merely nodded, bid his commander farewell and strode back down the way he had came.

* * *

The trio of adventures meanwhile had managed to cover a generous amount of ground towards their destination of Deningrad. They were still a good half a day away, perhaps more if the snow grew more dense, but the towering Crystal Palace, although now only half of its former glory thanks to the recent attack from the Divine Dragon, shone like a brightly lit beacon or lighthouse, signifying their not so far away destination.

Monsters had been scarce but in their place large snow wolves had given the three plenty to be wary about. They were larger than any canine Zack had ever seen, some almost half of his own size with thick tuffs of white fur that likely provided them with an intimidating bulkiness they didn't really have and they hunted in large packs of up to twelve or sometimes more. They had attempted of course to strike them early in their journey towards the crystal city but with a few dramatic theatrics from Rose that resulted in rather vicious butchery along with Kongol's innate ability to scare just about anything whether human, animal or monster, the pack soon retreated, opting to follow them at a safe distance as a reminder that they were always ready to attack should the situation warrant it.

When not worrying about monsters, food or water (the former they gained from berries and herbs along with wolf meat, the latter gained from frozen ice flows where chilled fresh water ran underneath) Zack had time to withdraw within himself to contemplate recent, present and possible future events. Mostly he was noting the transformation of his mind and body that had occurred during the many days and weeks of his travels. Physically he was now much deeper tanned and the considerable bulk he once carried around his body had been stripped a good deal, yet beneath was now a strong sheen of smaller yet more sculpted mass. This enabled him much more mobility which in his opinion was a fair trade off for the small loss in power, and his endurance while always admirable had just about tripled. Journeys spent lagging behind Rose taking many pit stops had come to an end as he travelled abreast Rose and Kongol with no issue, despite the sapping nature of the soft snow they were walking on. Zack wasn't sure exactly when the greater part of this transition began but he thought the rough climb up the Valley of Corrupted Gravity paired with the arduous travel of the desert within the Death Frontier had a lot to do with it. It brought him a sense of pride to know he was able to adapt to the relentless pace after all.

_But I've only been journeying like this for a couple of months, I can't even begin to fathom what it must be like to do this over the course of eleven-thousand years._

"If the legends that were spread about the Crystal Palace are true than it was wrecked by the attack of a dragon after all?" Zack said, knowing well true the answer. It was a conversation opener more than anything else as the proof was staring him in the face, to create the damage of that magnitude to a construct of what was among the strongest in the world was testimony enough. He couldn't imagine anything else capable of such destruction. He thought Rose might berate him on such an obvious question as she so often did, but on this occasion she chose not to.

"Not just any dragon, the strongest dragon of all, the Divine Dragon. So powerful in fact that the Winglies with all their power and glory feared the creature so much that they were forced to seal it within a giant mountain. Eventually the seal broke, as all things ultimately do with time, and it took it's vengeance out on the once Wingly city of Deningrad. The results are what you see before you."

"Frightening" Zack murmured. "How were you able to kill such creature?"

"With an artifact that weaken it considerably. That paired with the fact it wasn't at full strength due to its millennia long slumber gave us the edge we needed to destroy it. If it hadn't been for those two factors then we would all be helpless under it's near eternal power."

Kongol huffed at this. "Dragon strong, but we stronger."

Neither Zack nor Rose said anything to this.

"So it's as I thought then, the Crystal Palace isn't man made."

"No" Rose said, brushing past the thickening shrubbery and trees. "Originally it was a Wingly birth place where new born are selected based on a kind or ritual of aptitude whether they are strong enough to take their rightful place amongst them or not. If they were considered weak they were cast away like trash."

Zack shook his head. "They were cruel even to their own kind."

"Is it really so bad? After all the weak only end up suffering while the strong thrive, when you think about it that way it's really a gesture of mercy."

"Even the weak have their place" Zack returned feebly. He no longer had the desire to change her view on morality. They just saw life as two different things and in the end all he could do was accept that.

"Same with Giganto" Kongol added with his deep rumbling voice. "Strong live, weak die. It's the way of life."

With Kongol's input the conversation between the three faded into silence.

* * *

It wasn't until another two days that Deningrad came into actual reach. What Rose and Kongol knew that Zack didn't but soon found out was that the crystal city itself was tucked away inside a valley between two of the towering snow peaks that lingered in the distant horizon. It was still a far easier journey than the rigors of the Death Frontier, all three of them could attest to that but the freezing climate especially during the night was still incredibly unforgiving. Soldiers and monsters were at least objects you could actually overcome, but no matter how powerful or sturdy you are still powerless under the fickle grip of Mother Nature. It had come closer to killing Zack numerous more times than any battle he had so far taken part in.

On the last night of their crossing it came damn close.

Zack had exceeded the limit of his endurance one too many times. His body unable to in anyway adapt to the glacial temperatures hyperthermia snared him and snared him bad. At first he shared the same symptoms they all had they all had it, it was impossible not to have mild dose of it after all it without thicker gear and even then to be out in such blizzards was foolhardy. Fighting to keep extremities warm under makeshift gloves while you half freeze doesn't allow one to get any real sleep of a night either and so they were all wary and fatigued, but Zack came to a point where he couldn't keep up.

As they did what they could to take cover from the howling winds by creating a somewhat poor improvised ice bunker, Rose heard Zack fall into what was clearly dangerous coma. His breathing turned erratic and haggard in worrying intervals, and when Rose tried to wake him to provide temporary warmth he never responded.

_Damn it not now! _Rose cursed bitterly. She threw her thick coat which had many layers of wolf pelt across him and Rose began to vigorously rub warmth to his body outside the layers of fur.

"Zack, respond to me damn it" she beseeched, but all it earned her was a whimpering moan. he was dying, his core body temperature in danger of freezing.

Glancing outside the opening of their crude ice cavern Rose could hear more than see the storm had no intentions of subsiding.

Weighing up the options momentarily and uncharacteristically letting desperation to get the best of her, she moved to their supply bag which Kongol usually carried across his back, pulled three small pieces of chopped timber where more sticks than any solid wood, and tossed them together near the place Zack was laying, only a thin blanket between his body and bare snow. Bundling them up and sat back a few paces, held her arms out and dark flame ignited instantly.

_I'll have to channel the spell to stop the winds from blowing them out _Rose thought idly to herself as the upkeep of her spell began to tax her already.

Rose didn't know how long she could or would keep the fire spell before the inevitable toll would ebb at her life force, but as she too relapse into unconsciousness some part of her must have remained awake because not until dawn when the storm subsided did she let the flames die, according to a future retake from Kongol who was awake to see it all.

* * *

As the sun made its misty return on their side of Endiness Kongol was up, supply pack strapped across his back as well as a limp Rose across one of his massive shoulders. She had not woken up, clearly used too much of her virtual non-existent energy to keep the bonfire that not only saved the human weakling's life but his own as well. If not for the fire that provided just enough heat to escape death then none of them would be awake right now.

Kongol's attention then turned to the boy, who still lay unresponsive as well.

_Doesn't deserve saving _Kongol thought initially and was happy to leave it at that. But upon recollecting the events of the night passed and witnessing the dangerous effort his friend went to save the whelp, he felt obliged to add Zack to his other shoulder. The giant now carrying a pack with two persons on each shoulder plus his giant axe would have weighed at least close to two hundred kilograms, but the massive Giganto took it all in stride, determined to get them all to Deningrad by the end of that day.

Kongol made good on his promise.

_Warm, it's warm again._

Rose ascended back to consciousness inside one of the bed chambers not affected by the near annihilation of the Crystal Palace that took place not so long ago. it took a few moments for her to gather her wits, her body while warm (perhaps even a little hot) was still suffering from lethargy.

She looked around, her eyes scouring the majestic light hues of the crystalline above and beside that coated all parts of the leaning citadel from top to bottom where man made staircases and circular rooms littered somewhere in-between, held aloft by the jagged spines of near indestructible crystal that lingered at the bottom like a spike pit. Sunlight gleamed off the crystal in violent reflections while other rays passed right through the numerous gaps and holes that resulted after the attack by the Divine Dragon. To wake up in such a dazzling place Rose realised faintly likely added to her initial disorientation.

The next question that had to be asked was how she got here. She remembered the storm, remembered lighting a fire to keep Zack from freezing to death -

_Oh shit, Zack._

he wasn't in the huge bed chamber that only she now occupied. Giving herself a quick examination revealed that she wasn't in her usual attire neither, instead a simple white gown covered her from neck to toe, giving her the appearance of someone regal or otherwise politically important. It made her uneasy and didn't suit her in the slightest, but it was something that could be worried about later, for now she had to find out what happened to her other two comrades.

Slipping off the bed Rose was met by an involuntary wave of feebleness that sent her falling to her knees. She felt she had sea legs unable to adapt to solid earth as he knees gave way and buckled beneath her. She cursed furiously at her weakness.

Padded footsteps resounded from just under her towards the staircase to the east. Pushing herself so she could sit back on the bed and not be seen in such a destabilized state, Rose waited as the footsteps that reverberated across a good portion of the crystal palace drew closer and closer.

"You're up!" a familiar voice and face greeted.

Rose was shocked to see Zack up and moving around let alone with so much energy. He hurried towards her, face full of relief.

"You've been out cold for quite some time, I was starting to get worried you know?"

Rose, who was now bewildered could only glance at him doubtfully.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Well" Zack began, taking a seat on the bed alongside her. "Apparently Kongol carried us both the last leg of the journey. I was suffering pretty bad from the cold, but once they got us inside the castle and made us warm I recovered relatively quickly. You on the other hand were strained for more reasons than the cold."

Rose looked upwards towards the glimmering crystals overhead. "Thank god we're all okay then."

Zack agreed. "I'm sorry I became a burden to you both. I nearly got us all killed."

Rose waved it away. "The point is we all made it, so that's all that matters."

Zack apparently wasn't willing to let it drop.

"No, I heard from Kongol that you had to risk yourself to keep me warm enough to survive, nearly getting yourself killed in the process. If you had of died just to keep me alive then..." Zack glanced away, leaving the statement open to interpretation.

"I got reckless and desperate" Rose admitted. "But it was still my choice, so if that scenario did take place then it has all to do with me and what I decide, not you, so do not assume to take responsibility for me, I can take care of myself."

"This isn't about responsibility but about being smart. I'm not trying to be a chivalrous hero here when I say that if it comes down to me or you, you have to make sure you look out for yourself. If you die Rose, what the hell can I or Kongol achieve alone? We'd be a chicken without its head and you know that, so if it comes down to it you let me die you understand? You're too important in all this to sacrifice so early, both me and Kongol agree to that."

Rose, feeling insulted at being given such a lecture stood up and turned away from him. Thank the gods her body didn't give out a second time.

"I'll say this once and once only, my life is my life, so it's up to me what I do with it, not you."

Zack, looking angry and frustrated took to his feet as well, perhaps ready to tell her how selfish it was, how whether she likes it or not she is a leader and others rely on her, but before he could get a word out they were interrupted by a third presence.

"I beg both of your pardons for the disruption" a young, golden woman said with a bow. Soft spoken yet decisive when the situation arises, Wink, one of three Sacred Sisters under the motherly watch and guidance of Queen Theresa moved towards them gingerly, smiling softly. Her long braided hair fell over her left shoulder in large round tresses, but the strong gravity in the youngest of the Sacred Sister's eyes showed that while she may be young, she was far removed from naivety.

"It's good to see you're awake" Wink said in her grave tone. "We got quite the shock when A Giganto appeared with two people draped over his shoulders. He looked like he had carried the two of you a fair distance and it was amazing he himself didn't die from exhaustion if nothing else."

"His fortitude is not to be underestimated, even among other Gigantos he ranks up the best.

Wink smiled, and while it wasn't much wider than the ones Rose spared on those few rare occasions, it was genuine and heartfelt. "Yes, after seeing him stand against the King of Dragons I should have known as such. But still, you three are very lucky, you were all on the doorstep of death."

"Then I am in your debt as well as Kongol's" Rose said.

Wink looked surprised and waved the claim away with both hands. "You owe us nothing! We can't even begin to repay you for saving Deningrad from the dangerous claws of the Divine Dragon! It has been our pleasure to at least in some way be able to return to gift of life you reserved for us."

"It wasn't like our sole aim was your survival, it just so happen that our aim coincided with yours."

"Well regardless you have saved Deningrad and for that we can never fully repay you. But putting that aside for the moment we believe you have some rather worrying news to deliver us."

Rose turned to Zack, she assumed he would have already told them of the situation. Zack merely shrugged sheepishly.

"I thought I'd leave the talking up to you. The warning would come better heeded from a hero like you than an unknown individual like myself."

Rose sighed deeply. "I'd like to request an audience with the Queen, Miranda, and anyone else of importance so I only have to tell the story once."

"We've all been awaiting your recovery and as such we're ready to grant you audience at any time. Please don't take offense when we say that we felt your coming here was a kind of ill omen."

_My whole life has been a kind of ill omen really. _

"None taken" Rose returned. "I do wish I could say what I have to say is good news, but as you've already come to the conclusion that is very much not the case."

Wink nodded knowingly. "Then follow me miss, I shall escort you to the Queen's Chambers where we can talk."

Wink led, Rose and Zack followed.

* * *

"This place is really something else" Zack admired openly as they climbed the giant staircase known aptly as The Giant Span.

"Before the attack by the Dragon King, the Wingly crafted crystal spires have never faltered. This sacred palace was not something simply mould or change it had to be lived within. With nigh a unbreakable crystal shield the kingdom could be built around an absolute defense, even from all but one dragon."

Spires seemed antiquate, the ice crusted crystal spanned easily as large as the twin castle despite the fact it was cut nearly in half. It leaned as well towards the north east and as the man made architecture moved with this design so naturally it was hard to imagine them separate.

As they climbed the spiraling stairs they breasted what was noticeably more lavish interior. The Queen's throne room was a standout among the already countless splendors of the icy palace, the seat of the Queen a kind of crystal edifice of its own. Above and around the domineering royal chair that appeared a kind of quartz tomb at least in Zack's opinion slithers of brilliant sunlight slipped between the narrow gaps. It gave the generous throne room a kind of holy aura as it beamed upon the resting queen, gowned in a regent robe that fell across her in a splay of green, white and red. A huge crown that was more a strange kind of matching top hat than any proper gemmed circlet or coronet. None the less the face beneath it was one that was aging yet very wise and sharp. She regarded them all gravely with eyes that were eerily unreadable.

Another woman, a much younger woman of gold hair that fell to her shoulders along with a cold hard stare that Zack thought could rival Rose's stepped into focus. The woman was staring directly at Rose. A red cuirass covered her leather plate beneath as her legs disappeared beneath long leggings and boots. She was dressed for battle, and Zack worried for a moment that they might be in a compromising situation.

"I'm not surprised you're alive" the blonde woman said with a stern face. "If nothing else you were stubborn."

"Still enjoy to give lectures I see" Rose responded with a shake of her head. "I guess you'll never lose that royal attitude of yours."

The blonde woman Miranda, another and eldest of the Sacred Sisters broke out into a smile. "I can't believe I'm saying it but it's good to see you."

"Likewise" Rose said but did not share the smile. "I just wish our reunion could be under better circumstances."

Miranda's face turned grim. "I've been given some of the details by Wink. If what you say is true, then we are in a world of trouble. We're still repairing from the attack of the dragon, it wiped out many of our defensives units. We're more vulnerable to an invasion now than ever before."

"Hush dear" the Queen said softly. Yet her words held the weight as if they had been shouted to the heavens. Miranda bowed and fell silent at once.

Queen Theresa continued. "Miranda is correct, we are at somewhat of a disadvantage." her voice was stronger than one would expect of a graying woman well in her twilight years. "But with knowledge we can now avoid the most dangerous element of all: Surprise."

_Sorry to tell you honey, but surprise is the least you should be concerned about _Zack thought but did not dare voice.

"Everything else can be dealt with by methods of precise preparation."

"But can you prepare for an army consisting of not only humans and Winglies but creatures in-between?"

As commanding as the Queen's voice had been, as Rose's own input bounces across the crystal foyer it held a resonance that was somehow beyond even Theresa. "This is not a normal army, this is a force strong enough to capture not only Serdio but Tiberoa as well."

The Queen regarded Rose with a look that was somehow both revering as well as full of contempt.

"You think we're somehow oblivious to our surroundings? You assume your news is the first we've heard? All you have done is confirm what we've been suspecting for months. Moving from Serdio to Tiberoa was an obvious sign that we were the next target, and until a small while ago we were very close to those in the Wingly forest in an attempt to reconcile past events. When they ceased contact we suspected what may have happened, so your news does not incite as much shock as you appear to believe. Our forces are already rallied and prepared to battle."

"The forces you face are strong as they are numerous, a direct assault will ensure defeat."

Theresa smiled. "Who said anything about direct? We are like a spider laying a well disguised trap. We will ensnare our foes and crush them. With your help the odds of victory are very much towards our favour despite their army."

"I hope so Theresa, I hope so. They didn't just conquer the two other continents, they overwhelmed them. Don't let hubris stop you from making the wise decision."

With that Rose turned and walked away and down the stairs back down below. Zack could only look at the Queen then back where Rose was before taking off after his comrade.

He didn't meet up with her till she was within the room she had awoken in.

* * *

"What was that about?" Zack asked as she sat on the bed.

"We've never seen eye to eye" Rose responded coldly. "It's a personal matter between us. It'll not stop her from utilizing us, she's above petty personal vendettas, but there will never be a time where will can set aside our differences."

"What happened?" Zack asked.

"It matters not. What's in the past is best left there."

And with that Rose would say no more on the matter.

* * *

Kongol eventually regrouped with the duo as the in the guest quarters but without much business to directly attend to at the moment the three set upon more private matters like bathing and cleaning well worn garments. Zack disposed of his old shredded pants and shirt in favour for the new ones he acquired within the palace. His new, long sleeved tanned shirt, fashioned from some sort of unfamiliar hide or skin was clearly a hallmark among the people of the northern regions, at least those who could afford it. It was tight fitting and deceptively thin, but beneath the sturdy filament was a thermal heat that kept him warmer than even the thick cloaks that were given to them in Ulara.

Not only that but he was gifted new armour upon request as well. Thick, silver scale cuirass fitted with a mesh coif that covered all but the front portion of his face sat on him almost weightless. Matching leggings and grieves completed the set giving him the appearance of a kind of commanding general.

"It's light to be sure, but is it lacking in protection I wonder?" Zack wondered as he and Rose spent their eve back in their guest room. They bathed, ate and discussed future preparations briefly, but they all ended up at the same conclusion: Getting what rest they could for the time being and worrying about the rest a little later. Do not fall lax, but realise that they cannot for the moment be proactive but reactive, and at a moment's notice.

"Let me have a look."

Rose, who had declined the offer of a new raiment in favour of her own moved over towards Zack who was sitting on the foot of his giant bed with his scale chest piece in hands studying it intently. She took it from him and examined it herself for a few seconds before returning it.

"It's sturdy enough to turn a fatal blow not fatal, and perhaps stop an arrow or bolt from penetrating too deep if shot not too close, but true enough it doesn't offer quite the same protection as your older more cumbersome armour did. But in return you gain ease of movement, and there is no better protection from enemy strikes than not being struck at all."

Zack frowned, not entirely happy with the evaluation. "I'm not quite as nimble as you are, especially not if my back still gives me problems. But I'll do what I can do adjust."

Rose said nothing

* * *

to this, appearing too lost in her own thoughts to respond.

"Hey" Zack urged, forcing her attention. She snapped to him, shaking away her scattering thoughts.

"What?" She snapped sharply.

"Make sure you don't over think things tonight and actually get some sleep. If it's a war that's coming we don't know when we'll get the chance to have another one."

"I can take care of myself, it's you that has to worry about their own self. If the battle turns chaotic I won't be able to babysit you."

"And what if like during the battle in Rouge you _don't_ do such a good job of looking after yourself?"

"Then I die and the burden of responsibility falls upon you."

Zack chuckled, finding the response typical and dry cut, as he had come to expect from his partner. "Even if you don't watch me, I'll watch you. _Someone _needs to protect you when you decide to bite off more than you can chew after all."

Zack expected a tirade about she didn't need protection, about how she could easily take care of herself, but as he braced himself none came. She looked at him with an expression that was unreadable then returned to her own thoughts.

Nothing more was said between the two. Kongol returned after taking a great deal more time to gorge and bathe. His size meant he was unable to fit within the confines of the beds, despite their exceedingly large by humans standards size, and so he simply slumped against the wooden base that held the bed above the ground and drifted off, content to merely lean against a construct strong enough to hold his body.

As the lights dimmed and they all buried themselves within the many sheets to keep warm, Zack glanced towards Rose's bed a final time, knowing sleep would not come to her much if at all, and fell into an uneasy slumber himself.

* * *

_Royal Capital Kadessa, eleven thousand years prior when the battle of all battles took place. Kadessa floated high upon the clouds seeming to transcend the heavens, the mighty Wingly stronghold that was considered the race's very heart all but impenetrable by even the most foolhardy mind. Yet in this place, a kingdom that was so immense not just in height but girth that you could merge all three current human kingdoms and still only manage to scrape the surface, the final battle of a war that felt like spanned an eternity came to an end, the crumbling stronghold along with the death of the tyrant Melbu a deciding victory in the liberation of mankind._

_But it did not come without an equal price. _

_The city's destruction had almost entirely nothing to do directly with the seven Dragoon warriors but everything to do with the unleashed dragons and alien Virages, humanoid creatures as tall as castle towers destroying the opaque civilization with every errant swing or spell was compounded further by the liberal use of Wingly furiously fel magic that obliterated all within its path. The outer ring of the political and military center of the Winglies that spanned around it like a protective layer was in ruin, the more fragile center that held spires and palaces as grand as a modern castle withering like a dying tree as the war ravages everything within its grasp. _

_The battle was at a climax, but at this point the victor was still uncertain. _

_The battle had separated almost all of the seven Dragoon Knights. Rose and Zeig stuck together, neither having any clue of the grim fate that has already befallen the rest of their allies save for a kamikaze Kanzas who in his own mind of madness saw fit to destroy himself along with one of the towering Virages. Tired, weary and heavily wounded their chances for survival at that point didn't weren't all too high in Rose's estimation. _

_A determined Zeig showed an unwavering resolve. Hunkered down behind what was once a towering structure, perhaps a barracks before being nearly torn down in hopes a searching Virage wouldn't notice, the two warriors sat low against decaying wall in hopes for at least momentarily eluding their aggravated aggressor. With Mebu still not dead, they had to conserve what little energy left if they were to have any hope at killing the dictator himself in combat. Yet Rose didn't think they had it in them to kill him even if he somehow appeared before them right then and there. _

_"We've wounded it we can kill it" Rose said through a horsed tone. _

_"Not without killing or maiming at least one of us, that thing is huge. It's not worth the risk, we'll slip by it and hunt Melbu."_

_The very real idea of death that one didn't usually have time to contemplate during the throes of combat seeped into her very core along with a wave of desperate helplessness now that her mind had time to consider it . They weren't going to find Frahma, they weren't going to go back and have their promised marriage, they weren't even going to survive through the next five minutes. The realisation brought on a numbing kind of finality to their struggle. _

"_... I'm scared" Rose muttered, her head down, face marred by mud, blood and now tears. _

_Zeig was upon her before she even finished the word. _

_"I'll protect you, even if it costs my life. I don't care what I gotta go through, we're both getting out of here alive. Just make sure you got my back, that's all I'll need, leave the rest to me." He smiled, beaming with utter belief in his pledge._

_"I always have your back damn it, you think you would have made it this far if I didn't?" The two shared a knowing look and a brief chuckle as Rose wiped away falling tears._

_Then he was gone, flying out of the barrack that was now more a cove, and flying directly towards the enraged Virage. _

_Shit what is he doing!?_

_By the time she was airborne Zeig was already engaging the colossal beast. powerful strikes of Zeig's flaming sword do nothing but infuriate Virage further. It pawed at him with mighty hands, but Zeig was only narrowly avoiding the fatal swipes. The Virage is almost playing with him, as if the thing somehow knows Zeig is in fragile state. _

_Zeig burst forward, towards the floating eyes upon a somehow massive bovine like skull and thrust his broad sword directly into one. The massive Virage roared with pain and fury as Zeig dislodged his blade and retreated back as fast as he could. _

_Rose was now watching this in slow motion as she neared the battle. A thin beam of ethereal light shot towards Zeig like a sling shot, it was so reactive and quick that Zeig was only able to avoid the film of pure energy was to roll off balance. Before he could regain his bearings the Virage had already brought its massive hand down once more, slamming Zeig with a force that was deafening. The following momentum launched Zeig towards her like a pinball and she was force to chase his hurtling body lest he fall down towards the unforgiving earth below. _

_His body shook violently in her hands. _

_"Zeig!" she cried but he was somehow out of her arms and hovering beside her.._

_"It's cool, I manage to block some of it. I'm just a little jarred, that's all."_

_"Idiot" Rose said and pushed him back with a hard shove. He winced painfully. She then flew forward, her turn to engage titan. _

_She heard her lover call from behind but she didn't listen. She could only use this spell once and she was hoping to save it for Melbu, but she has no other choice. The Virage lashes out with more energy beams but Rose avoids them as she rockets higher into the sky._

_"Demon's Gate!" pointing her sword towards the ground far below a rumble vibrates even at their height as the gathering of energy manifest within the gap between Rose and the Virage._

_In practice she had never attempted the high level spell she was about to summon, but none of that mattered. Giving everything her body and soul have to give the spell harvest her very life force as the Virage begins to thrash at the sense of powerful magic, the only magic they fear: Dragon magic. _

_From the fissures below turns into a kind of thin horizontal a kind of nexus as if looking into the portal to another word beneath, before a dark a vortex begins to rise from the pit towards the sky and what was once a slither of dark energy turns into a massive gateway to another whole dimension, pulling everything around it like a giant magnet. _

_The Virage tried to flee as the vortex opens like an invisible door to reveal a black nothingness sucked it in with almost tangible greed. _

_What Rose didn't count on during her intense concentration to uphold the spell was Virage attempting to take her with it. It's claws shot forward and grabbed her lower half, pulling her into the netherworld with it. Rose tried to fight, but if she didn't continue to channel the spell then she would lose it and all would be lost. If she too had to die because of her decision then so be it. She was already prepared to die, and if she could do so taking this beast with her then all the better._

_Her thoughts were startled by a shout from above. Zeig was rocketing towards the two of them as they merged dangerously close to the looming gate between this world and the next. With a grunt of visible effort Zeig brought his sword down with all strength, the blade tearing at the arm that had ensnared her. He couldn't sever the massive limb, but on an instinctual reaction the Virage's grip loosened, allowing Rose to slip out free herself from her unwelcomed fate. _

_The danger wasn't yet over. As the massive creature faded behind the veil of blackness it continued to pull in everything around it, floating monuments, pillars and broken pieces of various Wingly textiles were sucked into the abyss. Zeig and Rose were helpless to fight against the impossible current. _

_"Close it now!" Zeig urges._

_"I'm trying!" Rose snarls venomously. They were ten or fifteen meters away at the longest and that gap was quickly shrinking. But opening the Demon Gate had been a whole lot easier than sealing it. With the stress of the very small time frame, it was almost an impossible task. _

_"Damn it I don't think I can!" _

_"Don't think just do!" Rose hears her lover respond. _

_With a cry of helpless frustration Rose pours everything she has left into closing the gate. "Be gone!" she commands, and as quickly as it had manifested the gate shuts, receding beneath the earth from whence it came. _

_A kind of eerie silence descends upon their area of the falling citadel, as if the gate had not consumed a Virage but an entire nation. A wave of relief that her and Zeig a still alive wash over her along with an exhaustion that makes her eyes blur, threatening to give way to the oncoming darkness. _

_Rose fights it with the help of supporting arms wrapping around her torso. Zeig lowers the two of them towards the broken structure they had been hiding in. _

_"That was some spell" Zeig commented after setting her down on jade if not fractured floor. It was cool to Rose's exposed skin, but not in an unpleasant way. _

_"I was hoping to use it on Frahma. As you can see, it's not a spell I can use more than once" Rose responded between large, gasping breaths._

_Zeig smiled flamboyantly. "Leave him to me." he thumped his ruby chest for emphasis. Despite Roe's worn state even she managed a wry grin._

_"Thank you... for saving me... again" she eventually added, recollecting this was far from the first time her leader had saved her from trouble. _

_"Hey, I told you didn't I? We're both getting out of here, I'll make sure of it!" Another proud thump, but this time Rose sensed (or thought she sensed) a false or off note in his claim. She hoped it was merely her groggy mind playing tricks on her._

_Then the silence was shattered by the destruction of more nearby architecture. _

_Zeig's ashen face turned stone. "Guess break time is over." He offered a hand to a prone Rose, which she took gladly, if a little gingerly. _

_"I love you" Zeig said firmly with a squeeze of his hand on hers, but it was not affixed with his signature smile. His face and tone were somber. _

_"And I you" Rose responded, matching his melancholy. _

_That would be the last time they would exchange such affections for over eleven-thousand years._

* * *

Rose roused from her half recollection-half dream, feeling a yearning loss fill her as it so often did after witnessing such tragic events of the past.

_What I wouldn't do to have a night of sleep devoid of nightmares _she wonders absently. She can't tell how early it is, but judging from the fact both Zack and Kongol were still deep in slumber, their body clock wired to raise at sunrise even when it wasn't necessary, she surmised it was at some point before dawn. Knowing that sleep would not find her again on this night, she wondered for a time just what she should do to clear her mind.

_I haven't practice my sword play lately..._

In the end the decision was not hers to make. Her thoughts were shattered by a barging Miranda, gold hair flying behind her as she appeared before her in her white battle tunic and shorts.

Rose noticed immediately the bow and subsequent quivers shouldered across her back and immediately understood the situation.

"A large contingent of soldiers have been spotted to the south" Miranda shouts this with anxious concern.

Rose it out of her bed and fastening her sword and scabbard which had been left leaning against the side of her bed panel.

"How large?"

"Large enough to be considered a raid force. This is no scouting or diplomatic party, it's a massive force of armed soldiers, Sandorian emblemized flags and all. they really mean to go to war with us!"

The commotion woke both Zack and Kongol.

"What's... going on?" Zack mumbled behind half-lidded eyes.

"We may very well soon be under siege" Rose returns with a tone that didn't betray her inner anxiety one bit.

Zack could only groan out one response, which ironically enough summed up all of their thoughts.

"Oh god."


	21. Chapter 21: First Encounter

**Chapter 21: First Encounter**

The three visitors of Deningrad were ushered back towards the throne room of the castle by Miranda who shepherded with anxious haste, but the Queen herself was absent from her throne. Rose didn't think this surprising in the least, would in fact be more worried if she had been present. Theresa was no more a stranger to war than she herself was, and she was undoubtedly communing with her advisors and war marshals about how to proceed with the impending battle.

Behind the throne however was another small alcove that branched higher still. Almost completely hidden seat of sovereignty was a crystal passage that climbed to a higher part of the castle that Rose wasn't even aware existed. How it wasn't damaged with the recent dragon attack Rose wasn't quite sure, but as they climbed the narrow stairway that allowed only a single file to climb (Kongol almost having to move sideways) It led to a small open plateau that was a kind of round lookout that jutted to the side of the main palace's body like a small extending arm.

The icy caress of the open cold greeted them as they stepped away from the cover of the palace crystalline walls and into a kind of large catwalk that lead to a circular platform as big as a small room with a singular large telescope dominating the centre. Rose also notice the immediate change in surface they walked upon, no longer a turquoise hue luminosity but a stark kind of dark granite or perhaps limestone. This part of the palace, which wasn't quite the apex (or what was once considered the apex, it certainly was now that the top third of the castle was no longer) was manmade. Rose paused a moment as she contemplated this.

"As you well have guessed, this is our addition to the Wingly-made palace. Winglies had the ability to glean great distances with magic. Lacking that ability we thought it prudent to implement some measure of observance over the country, and so we created a telescope that was able to grant us a way to monitor the greater part of Mille Seseau should the reason arise, like it so does now" Miranda explained as if reading Rose's thoughts. The view before them was as breathtaking as it was grand, most of Mille Seseau could be seen from this height.

Rose nodded in a way that said _makes perfect sense_. Zack on the other hand thought it a little intrusive, but could also see the practical side. After all if not for this device then they may not have any warning at all about the oncoming army ready to storm the capital.

Waiting for them as they breasted the telescope was the Queen, no longer adorned in her casual, if regal attire but one that was considerably more battle ready. Chain linked armour not too unlike the one Zack was bestowed with shined brilliantly in the crowning sunlight changing her appearance to a fragile, elderly woman to a battle-hardened veteran. If not for the many sigils encrusted across her breast plate and helmet, then one would not think her a Queen at all.

Beside Theresa was a new face none of the three recognised. He was the first to step forward when they arrived, a bulky frame likely made broader by the thick sheen of golden plate steel that covered the entirety of his frame. He approached Rose initially, before Zack and finally Kongol. He extended his hand in earnest, introducing himself as he gave a brief but firm shake of both Rose and Zack's hand. Kongol meanwhile merely glanced down at the unknown warriors gloved hand behind his unreadable white iris' and made no effort to take it. The large unknown soldier, a veteran himself Rose would guess given his grey hair that fell below his golden faceplate and wrinkled face, a sure sign of aging merely retracted his hand and faced Rose once more without worry, his steely green eyes grim yet composed. Rose had no doubt he was as capable as his eyes hinted experienced.

"As general of the army, I am at your service." Ramish as he had introduced himself as thumped his golden chest plate solemnly as if to somehow pontificate his statement. He was looking squarely at Rose now who did not even try to hide his open judgment.

"I do not require your service" Rose merely said, turning her gaze towards Theresa in a way that was discourteously dismissive. The general appeared offended not at all.

"He, along with the two of us will be heading the defence force of Deningrad. However before I go into further detail you should first perceive what we are up against. Please, take a look through the scope." The Queen gestured with an open hand towards the towering telescope that was dwarfed even the ones in Fletz, who were large in their own respect. Rose did so without a word.

It was worse than she had hoped. The telescope was powerful to be sure, able to spy anything of human stature without any real detail, but what Rose saw was a giant mass of indistinguishable shapes that were surely human, but cluttered so close around the dense forest that they appeared less an amassing army of humans than a plague of hungry locusts, ready to devour anything in its path. While it was impossible to estimate an accurate count of their, it was clearly in the many thousands if not tens of thousands.

"Even I didn't expect an army this massive" Rose admitted as she moved away from the magnifying contraption. Zack took a look before letting out a troubled groan. Kongol meanwhile remained stationary, as if such trivialities like the number of enemies were meaningless. To him they probably were.

"How many soldiers do we have?" Zack asked Theresa. It was Ramish who answered.

"At this point, no more than three thousand, and that's getting every able citizen not young or elderly'

Rose, thinking about the overwhelming numbers the telescope showed her which was now imprinted in her mind like a horrifying image scowled deeply.

"We're at three or four to one odds at a rough estimate. Considering they also have Winglies among the ranks as well as battle-hardened soldiers thirsty of blood, this situation we are in is precarious to say the least."

Precarious was a fabrication though, hopeless was what Rose really felt was adequate but did not speak. It would do them no good to kill morale before they even began their first skirmish.

The Queen however, ever the bastion of hope and optimism, spoke with rugged determination. "If we can destroy the King of Dragons, we can jump this hurtle as well." There was no falsities or artificial bravado in her claim, despite the fact it was probably both. As the ruler and the one her people looked up to in desperate times, she shouldered the burden bravely. To falter now would ensure defeat before the battle could even begin, both of them knew it. As much as Rose may not like Theresa on a personal level, she respected her as a ruler and as a leader.

"How did they... so quickly" Zack stammered, trying to wrap his mind around how they could amass such an army in such short time.

"They docked and consequently decimated Furni, our neighbouring port city. Unprepared the town was quickly wrest from our control."

The three of them could say nothing for a time.

"They certainly weren't subtle about their endeavour" Zack muttered.

"They never intended to be." The Queen explained. "If they wished, they could scatter in the denser parts of the forest, making it far more difficult to discern the force of the army. But they chose to stand out like a lighthouse, they want us to see what we are up against."

"To crush our spirit before the war begins" Rose agreed.

"That is not all." Theresa's face, which had until now been an expression of grave resolve became something a little closer to what they all really felt: helplessness.

"During the night we got a survivor from Furni. He was allowed to live on the condition he could send a message. That message was that this war could be averted if we handed over but four people."

Rose nor Zack needed to be told who those four people were.

"Us three and Miranda, correct?" Rose said knowingly. Theresa nodded sternly.

"If we accepted their request, they could leave Mille Seseau without delay. If nothing happens by high noon, they will begin the attack."

Rose regarded the Queen evenly. "And your response?"

Theresa sighed deeply. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't consider it, hell I'd be lying if I didn't admit I damn near considered it, but I am no fool. Even if he promises to leave Mille Seseau alone, giving him the people that will grant him the power he so sorely wishes will leave us in a position no better than Tiberoa or Serdio, even if we're not under direct occupation. If he gains the power he desires, the whole world will be Sandora's slave. So in the end, we will fight."

Rose nodded apparently content with her answer.

"So this is just a display to flex their muscle then" Zack said, pointing roughly in the area of the enemy soldiers. "A kind of 'this is what you're up against if you decide to go against us' kind of thing."

"Indeed' the Queen said. "But it will take more than this to shake my resolve. We have a bloody past spanning back to the Dragon Campaign, war is nothing new to us or our people. I feel we're being underestimated at least for the moment. That gives us one advantage, and we need as many as we can currently get."

"But we're so outnumbered..." Zack trailed off, looking towards the amassing soldiers to the south but once more.

"Perhaps, but we have the best minds and strategists in regards to war that we can currently get. Between us, we should be able to devise at least something that gives us a chance at victory." Rose and Zack glanced at Ramish sho had until now remained reticent.

"The Queen and I are no strangers to battles, albeit not usual of this magnitude, but you were one of the seven that ushered in not one but two new ages. With your input given that you have already been involved in numerous encounters already gives us another edge that may be able to tip the scale."

Rose eyed him warily for a time, not feeling comfortable that someone she knew so little knew so much about her. _The Queen's doing _she supposed, one of very people in all Endiness that knew how far back her past truly spanned.

"I am no leader" Rose responded coldly. "Never have been nor will be."

And that was true for the most part. While she was capable of making split moment decisions when the situation warranted, some good, many ill, she was never a true leader in either Dart's or Zeig's group of rebels. That had been left to those whose nature it was to do so, and while on the surface both of the former Red-Eye Dragoon's masters tendencies leaned towards impulsiveness, leading was something they did without even needing to think about it.

"You will have to be now" Theresa said, her hard voice like a knife slicing through her internal struggle as the weight of her burdens threatened to crush her completely.

"... I will do what I can."

"As will we all" the Queen agreed with a nod. "But before that we would have you share what information you know about the enemy. Once all knowledge is shared and in the open, then we can begin proper battle perpetrations."

Rose complied, explaining in as much detail as she could about the soldiers and Winglies along with those in-between."

"The weakness of pure Winglies are simple: Close quarter combat. Not given a chance to weave magic they are vulnerable to blade and arrow just as anything else on this planet is. Of course it sounds easier in theory than it actually is, they guard themselves well and make every attempt not to engage the frontlines. Think of them more as mobile ranged artillery or mortars if you will. The frontline soldiers will do everything they can to make sure we cannot get near their support."

"Which only adds more weight to the idea of fighting within the city, where we can set up barricades and funnel the enemy into narrow streets" Ramish said thoughtfully.

"It's not so easy. Winglies have the advantage of flight which allows them to ignore such counter-measures. That's why a archers will have the hard task of doing their best to pepper them and keep them distracted long enough for one of us Dragoon Knights to intercept where we can level the playing field."

Rose paused a moment to give either Theresa or Ramish (or Zack and Lucile for that matter, Kongol's silence was expected and he would remain so until he was needed where his specialties really lay) a chance to add or probe further, and when none came Rose continued forward.

"The hybrids will be more of a problem. They have the best of both worlds, the up close and sturdiness of humans along with the magical aptitude of Winglies. They are seemingly able to ignore pain and all but the most fatal of wounds as well, unless you pierce the heart, spinal cord or neck they will continue to attack even if they have to crawl. It is... frightening to witness such feats of inhumanity up close. There's every chance it will put a good dent in what will likely already be waning moral of your soldiers."

"That is not what we can directly control, at least not as of yet" Theresa said softly. "All we can do now is plan, the rest will be what it will be."

Rose nodded.

"In any event they are easily distinguished and lack the flexibility of reactive thinking, they follow orders and nothing else. As such they are easily lured into traps and ambushes, so we can use that accordingly."

They spoke a little more about the specifics of what they were up against, but eventually the big decision they had until now been circling needed to me made. Where would the battle take place?

The Queen was the first to make her pitch. "The forest is a beast of its own and as such can be used against them. It's harsh and unforgiving and can be used as a weapon. The Evergreens are easy to light, making fire an excellent ally to corral or separate squadrons."

"With all due respect my lady, everything that we can use they can use as well. Not to mention it leaves us open to flanking on all sides should they have better navigation of the forest than we anticipate. I think our best option is to turn Deningrad into a fortress and defend from within."

Both of their eyes then fell on Rose. It appears her opinion would be the one that decides the impasse.

She took a minute to give it some thought.

"I agree with Ramish, we use the town, at least to begin with. If it falls or something goes amiss, we can still retreat to the forest or the mountains behind."

The Queen nodded. "Very well."

"The Wingly situation worries me though" Miranda voice tentatively. Her golden hair, normally left unbound was tied back into a single ponytail that fell down her back. "Given firsthand knowledge of their power, if they so chose to they could conjure a spell to virtually decimate Deningrad without even moving their troops."

"I had given that some thought, but remember what he really wants is not this town or its destruction, it is us. Anything so robust as that would risk losing both us and the Dragoon Spirits he desires so strongly. No, given how he has made an effort to bring a force of ground troops this large I'm willing to wager he'll fight this war the old fashioned way."

"I hope you're right." With that, Miranda said more on her megrims.

"As for battle preparations themselves..." She turned to the general. "I'll leave that mostly to you, since you'll know your own force's capabilities better than I. I all I ask is we divide up into two groups: One who will confront Sandora on the battlefield, and one who will remain to protect the Queen and Miranda in a defendable position, the Throne Room being ideal. We along with perhaps the Queen's death to cause dissonance will be their priority, at least I think."

"You'll be heading the defence I assume?" Ramish questioned.

A small pause.

"No, I'll leave that to Zack and Miranda. Ideally I'd like us all together, but that will leave the assault force vulnerable without at least one Dragoon Knight and grouping up all of Sandora's targets in one location is a little risky."

Zack stiffened at the sudden shift in responsibility but said nothing.

Miranda on the other hand relished the idea and thumped her bosom with a closed fist. "None shall get past our defence."

Rose smiled thinly. "Good. Spare as many as you can afford, but not too many. A small group of specialized soldiers would be preferable, but I'll leave that up to you good general. I'll lead the initial attack force."

"I can fight as well" Theresa said with a dangerous grin. "I will not sit back idly while my town is under siege."

"Your position exceeds that of your lust for blood. If you fall, so does a great chunk of your army's confidence, and that would be disastrous. Your survival is pivotal so do nothing reckless you understand?"

More tension sunk between the two, but in the end Rose knew the Queen would listen to reason and do what was best for her people.

"Evacuate any unable to participate in the battle and meet me within the centre of town with all your able-bodied men and women. From there we shall discuss specifics of the ambush."

Ramish nodded in acknowledgement.

"Although we may have till noon, I'd like us to be ready by midday. One can never entirely trust words of the enemy, especially when said enemy threatens to invade."

The general saluted both Rose and the Queen, his gaze lingering on the latter a few seconds before she gave a single nod. Then he was gone, disappearing down the narrow passageway.

The five of them were left, standing on the precipice, legions of enemies swarming below in the distant thickets.

"Kongol will be with you I take it?" Zack said, feeling the need to break the silence.

"Naturally, he will be left to do what he does best after all."

At this Kongol flashed a gruesome smile that all four of them knew the meaning of.

"A lot will hinge on the first encounter. I plan not to simply drive them back but to slaughter them in a truly magnificent display to send a clear and concise message. While a portion of their army may be inhuman, the greater part are like all of us and can feel terror and hesitance. Once we send the first wave running back with screams of agony and mercy, they will lose some of their bravado and think twice before rushing into our ready blades." To this she glanced at Kongol. "You in particular will stand out due to your size and mass. This probably goes without saying, but make your destruction a loud and clear message."

Another vile smile from the Giganto.

"Alright, let us return to the throne room and ready our defence."

* * *

The next couple of hours were dedicated to preparation. Most of it was done by Ramish, since Rose's trio had already done most of their preparing upon arrival, so Rose, Zack Kongol and Miranda spent most of the time within the Queen's chambers waiting for Ramish to summon Rose and Kongol for the readying of the assault team. For a small period of time Miranda and Theresa excused themselves for a while, perhaps to do what Rose was about to and give some inside orders that the other party wasn't aware of if things went truly sour (as was the nature of their distrust, even at a pivotal time like this, but such things in the end are unavoidable) and so Rose used the time to pull Zack aside and have a few important words.

"Above all your job is to make sure you and Miranda are not captured you understand? Even if that means you have to abandon Deningrad and the Queen."

Zack looked stricken at this order. "We can't simply flee and let this place fall!" Zack urged in a hushed tone.

"Yes you can and will. Make no mistake about it, if it comes down to surrendering any of us and Deningrad, I'll gladly let Deningrad fall. That doesn't mean I won't do my best to avoid that ultimatum, but if it is inevitable then you must grab Miranda and flee. I warn you of this beforehand because Miranda is loyal to the Queen and Deningrad, she will never leave the battle of her own volition even if it means certain death, so you will have to use a measure of force."

"I don't know if I can do that" Zack said feebly.

"You must! I know if goes against all of your morals to abandon this place and its people, but that is the responsibility of our position. We must sometimes make the hard choices, just as we cannot win every battle. But bear in mind, while it would regrettable to allow the last free frontier to fall into enemy hands, to allow us to do so and give him the last keys to his almost god-like ascension would be dooming the entire world. In the end we must sacrifice the few over the many."

"If this place falls is there anything left to even save?" Zack breathed in a murmur just higher than a whisper, but Rose could say no more on the subject as the Queen and Miranda re-entered the chambers. Rose didn't even need to tell him that what was just mentioned remained between them.

* * *

Rose waited the remainder of her time within the town's centre. The valley's icy crags that caressed the town like a kind of jutting slanted V shape (the Crystal palace of course at the rear of where the mountains met, providing the strongest defence) provided some protection from the cold, but not much. It wouldn't player a factor in the earlier parts of their war but would so as it dragged on when fatigue and sickness becomes as dangerous as the enemy. In that regard Rose supposed (or hoped) that the defending side who has had many generations to deal with such harsh climates had the advantage, but it was all too early to tell.

Despite being a capital of a rather large if barren continent, Deningrad, unlike Fletz, Bale and Sandora, wasn't built to be a country's crown jewel or a royal frontier that stood itself separate from the rest of its region like a brightly light bulb amongst a cluster of one's dimming or dying. Deningrad was basic and small, the only prominent land mark besides the bunched houses and stores that spanned out one either side of the protecting overhanging peaks separated only by the main stone walkway split the town right down the middle like the cut of a knife. The numerous smaller houses and stores of varying kinds were easily recognised as human constructs and not Wingly, the familiar mixture of fashioned stone, clay brick and limestone imprinted upon every one of them. Many if not all of them were frosted by the relentless snowfall and the presence of ice sculptures used to decorate the streets and roofs of many residences still made the town as a whole distinguished enough from any other that while the greater part was certainly man made, it still held a certain mystical resonance that wasn't so artificial.

"We've managed to vacate the town of all but those willing to fight" Ramish briefed with a somewhat rattled tone. It didn't bode to well at all if their season commander was already unnerved.

Within what was roughly the middle part of the town platoons of armed soldiers and citizens alike stood to attention on both sides. On the rooftops and on top of the smaller mountain ledges that overhung Deningrad were archers of varying types. By the time both the ranged and close combat portions of the army had been assembled, the town shrunk a great amount to the point it was almost claustrophobic. Surveying the numbers around them Rose came to the conclusion that while it wasn't quite as many as she had hoped it was more than she expected. But including the scouts keeping track of the Sandorian army that had now marched only a few leagues from outside of them and would take no more than an hour or two at most to reach them along with the defending soldiers within the castle, they had perhaps twenty five hundred to three-thousand able troops at best as Ramish had correctly estimated. It still paled before the entirety of the army that was marching towards them, and Rose could only hope Wen or whoever was in charge if he wasn't present wasn't planning to rush them with their entire mobilized army. If they did then their chances of victory just fell to nil.

"You're certain on the plan of attack?" Rose asked Ramish.

"Try and lure them in then ambush them from front and behind yes?"

Rose nodded. "It'll work for the first wave or perhaps two if that is how they're going to play it, but after that it'll be a useless tactic. More than anything we have to be flexible and adaptive, able to change strategies at a moment's notice."

Ramish agreed. "As it is with all great battles. You can plan and prepare as much as you like but you cannot account for every possibility."

A particularly icy gust blew through the town, causing them all to either cling to themselves or outright shiver involuntary. When it passed Ramish replaced his worried look with a smile malevolence.

"The gods are with us, at least for the moment" the general began with a chuckle so out of place Rose wondered if he was trying to place an ill-timed joke or if he had gone mad. "I can't remember a day so chilly, and that means something from someone who has spent a good portion of his aging life out in the wilderness. I can only imagine the trouble this cold will give to soldiers who are in no way attuned to such weather."

Rose paused a moment before letting the thinnest of smiles passing her own lips. "A fitting welcome indeed."

The spare time they had left before the first of the Sandorian empire clashed against the small town was spent going over preparations and making sure everyone was armed, in position and ready. When that was done most of the soldiers and citizens spoke amongst themselves nervously, many pacing or fidgeting. The exception to this of course was Rose, who retreated within herself as she always did to ready her body and mind for an afternoon of carnage.

* * *

The attack came late in the afternoon at a time where the sun would beam it's orange radiance so brilliantly it was as if it were somehow rejecting the idea that it could be forgotten during the dark period it spent blazing another part of the world. The beat of war drums (no impromptu or surprise attack on their end, they wanted to announce themselves as surely as an old friend would at the door of another's house) did not surprise her much, although she had expected an attack would take place at night which rendered her plan a little less effective, but the crimson horizon almost hidden beneath the sheen of encompassing white suggested that the fading light was just that on this day, fleeting. Rose estimated an hour or two at best of clear visibility.

"They come" Ramish said, stiffening as his hand wrapped around his blade a few hesitant moments before drawing it. A squad no more than a few hundred behind did the same as they guarded the entrance of the city like gate keepers.

The entrance itself was also a place of great significance and history, much of it because like the palace the gate was crafted and consequently woven by the magic of the Winglies. Much of that magic of course has now faded, what was once a crystal gate of such repelling magnificence (during Rose's assault on the city they had to breach if from the mountain surrounding as no magic or ballistae was capable of damaging the spire like gateway somehow appeared a row of huge crystalline spears that rose to the heavens) was a deteriorating deterrence at best, but even in this time it was a tool that could keep most willing to invade out. Its uses in this scenario were very limited, particularly because they had Winglies capable of manipulating it with their magic which was the very same it was created from, but limited or not it was still tool that could aid them, and they needed everyone they could get.

The gate was tall but not long and as such it tunnelled any invading forces to their advantage. The gate, which was manipulate through magic and without any kind of mechanism was one that opened by rising rather than swinging. Through the use of modern technology they had managed to force the gate open a little, at least high enough that even a dragon could pass through, but it could, if necessary, be lowered again at the cost of it remaining that way for the rest of the struggle. Because of that the they would have to wait for an opportune time to do so otherwise they would waste a instrument that could act as their wildcard.

What came bustling through the still opened crystal gates however what Rose expected: An experimental raid sent for the sole purpose of gauging the enemy's potential. The wave was not a large one and consisted of nothing besides a platoon of normal Sandorian soldiers. As far as Rose could tell in the few seconds she could afford to devour as many details as possible as the enemy rushed through the gate like a group of untrained barbarians there were no Winglies or hybrids of any kind. That of course didn't mean there wasn't, and to assume as such could be out right foolish if not fatal, but Rose's instinct in that moment told her that her group would encounter no such resistance, not yet. Wen, or whoever else was in charge of the proceedings was happy to send a sacrificial wave to better understand the nature of the beast they were up against.

Rose's final coherent thoughts before they were gripped by the flurry of battle frenzy was that _if they wanted to they could crush us in one massive siege, yet they are taking a very cautious route, almost as if we somehow had the advantage and they didn't. _It unsettled her for a few moments, but such thoughts would have to be better pondered at a later time. Now was the time for steel to meet flesh in the first of what would likely be many gruelling battles.

"HGold steady" Rose murmured to the anxious captain. The plan was to allow the bulk of the enemy army to engage them as close to the middle of the town as they could manage. Perhaps a hundred meters or as much as two separates her soldiers from theirs who even though are smaller than expected can still outnumber them in sheer manpower.

At least for the moment.

Rose thought there might be a strong possibility that at least one of the warriors they were now designed to face may notice something irregular or at least sense something amiss, but their minds consumed by nothing but the idea of battle and blood gave no such thought or pause. They truly were like rabid barbarians running as individuals rather than a well versed unit.

"Give the signal when they come within a few yards. But do not sign for the archers, not yet. We do not want to reveal our entire sleeve so early if we can help it."

Ramish nodded with a feral grin. It was then Rose realised he wasn't nervous or hesitant but somehow _excited_, the premonition of battle acting like small pheromones igniting his sensors and inciting his bloodlust, so much that he can't even keep still. Rose was surprised but for once surprised in a way that was very welcome.

Then a sudden halt, only a few feet from the zone Ramish was prepared to unleash the rest of his hidden army. The one leading came to a stop, and so did the legions of warriors from behind. For that brief second Rose feared their plan had been discovered before they could even initiate it.

"I act not only as commander of this legion but also as an emissary directly from the new King of Sandora!" His voice is powerful behind the masked helmet that obscured the owners features. "Heed this warning well for it shall only be offered once! Lay down your weapons and surrender Rose, Kongol, Zack and Miranda! Do this and we will trouble this continent no more!"

Silence fell upon the town like an ill omen, neither party quick to answer or follow up. Rose glanced at Ramish with a wry grin.

"Guess we better give him an answer."

Ramish nodded and turned his gave skyward for a few seconds towards one of the overhanging icy cliffs to the west that was high enough to offer plain view of the entire city. There, closest to the small middle ground that separated the two forces (no more than twenty meters) was a hunched down archer, low like a coiled snake in a blending white raiment that rendered the archer all but invisible under the sheet of white. Their eyes met a moment and Ramish gave a single nod.

It was too fast for the acting captain and emissary of the Sandorian force to react to. His did grunt in what sounded like surprise in moment before the arrow penetrated his thick cuirass with a deafening thud, so he probably saw _something_, but before he could likely register what that something was as it whistled through the air his chest now had a small hole that Rose had no doubt led straight to his heart. He was dead in an instant.

Shocked murmurs spread throughout the ranks of the enemy army, but that soon turned to outrage as the remaining footmen surged towards Rose and Remish's waiting men and women.

Ramish lifted his gauntleted hand high above his head in a straight motion and gave his clenched fist one hard shake.

As the forces of Sandora collided with those of Deningrad as every house, inn, warehouse and stall erupted with activity as the rest of the Deningrad military involved themselves in the battle, attack stunned and bewildered enemy soldiers from the sides and rear. The plan worked to perfect effect: total confusion and chaos within the heart of the enemy.

Rose attacked quickly and mercilessly, her body moving with fluid nimbleness of a trained acrobat. To an impassive onlooker it would appear as if she was somehow dancing to an unknown tune as she took the lives of her foes without pause regret, like it was all part of a sick, rehearsed play. But the reality of the situation was that this was certainly no play, the agonising cries of her dying adversaries could attest to that as they fell before her blade with an ease that was almost insulting. Granted it had been many years since she had involved herself in a war of this magnitude, all that way back to the Dragon Campaign in fact if you wanted to trace it that far, but she didn't suffer from any of the expected war rust she thought she would when confronted with a battle this size. Like a painter whose mind may have forgotten but body hasn't, she fell back into her old tactics as if she had been in such situations the day prior. She pushed when she had to but never to the point of recklessness and did likewise with retreat, moved back enough to give her breathing room but never enough to surrender significant ground. All the while she was able to avoid any injury too debilitating or fatal, thanks to her honed intuition that was borne out of the countless battles and acted as a keen kind of sixth sense.

Ramish and his soldiers were as savage as she was, perhaps not in her refined style but in a way that was just as effective. Unlike the Sandorian troops, Remish's men acted as a trained unit, striking and defending together to keep injuries and fatalities to a minimum.

But it was as Rose suspected and the enemy soldiers would not go without support. When it became clear that the defending side was getting the upper hand drums pounded again as if the earth itself was trembling and more troops poured in from the gate. But this was no normal attack force, but a more mobile one full of not only normal soldiers but the cross-breeds as well. Rose was a little shocked that he was using his ace so soon, but in the end it meant one of two things: Wen was intent on ending this early, or he was much more desperate than she had initially thought.

_Or both._

"Kongol!" Rose boomed as loud as her voice would carry, which travelled surprisingly well considering all of the background reverberations of steel and tearing flesh. And so the giant descended from palace steps, his white gaze hungry and all devouring. Although he was still a good distance from the heart of the battle, once his massive frame towered on level terrain he rushed into a charge that while appeared seemingly sluggish was quite the opposite as every one of his galloping steps were equal to roughly five normal human strides. The Giganto covered the fifty or so yard distance between him and the battle in under a minute.

Rose, who was retreating back as the congested numbers began to tip in favour of the invaders urged her forces to make room for the eager giant. As he neared, the ground seemingly shaking with every one of his huge steps, were more than happy to oblige. Like a crowd parting for a member of unexpected royalty a narrow passage was made for Kongol who stampeded like a bull. It went without saying that any unlucky enough to be caught in his path of destruction would suffer the same fate as his enemies.

His human sized axe cleaved like a butcher would a piece of meat, hewing limbs and bodies with a brutality that despite the increasing numbers gave the enemy fearful pause. Their hesitation was paid for in blood as Kongol went on a frenzy, his bloodlust taking control like a crazed animal. It wasn't just his weapon that he swung effortlessly with a single arm, his other free hand and both feet were used as giant bludgeons, able to send opponents literally airborne before they fell with a sickly thud. It wasn't long before the Giganto garnered the full attention of the raiding force, who made his death a visible priority. It was as if every soldier had surrounded the feral titan in an effort to overwhelm him with pure numbers.

"While they're attention is on him we'll strafe around and cut off retreat like earlier" Rose ordered a following Ramish. "But be mindful of Kongol, in this state he won't discern friend from foe, give him wide berth if you wish to have your body remain intact."

Ramish shouted more commands and began to angle around the thinning army who despite their greater numbers stood no more than ants in front of the frenzying Giganto, where such trivialities as greater quantity were rendered meaningless when a foe could slice five or more soldiers with a single swing. Their attacks were just as useless, despite bearing no armour their swords and spears had trouble penetrating past a layer or two of the bronze warriors skin. It was as if his skin was his armour, forged from some kind of unbreakable steel. This hopeless scenario forced the human foot soldiers into retreat, while the hybrids, unaware of emotions like fear or hesitation marched blindly to their slaughter.

But as Rose continued to scan to battlefield which had now been matted by a grotesque floor of fallen corpses, the violet warrior found something that could give both her and Kongol trouble hovering in the southern distance towards the endless wood were the rest of the enemy had made camp.

"Winglies coming in from the rear." Ramish looked towards where Rose was indicating with a nod of her head and tensed.

"I can barely see them in the dying sunlight but yes, I think you are right" the general conceded.

"I spot four... no, five so far. I hope your archery team are in position to protect Kongol who is vulnerable against magic."

"They await only an order" the commander said as they continued to skirt the evaporating contingent of enemies. As Rose suspected the Winglies' sole target was Kongol, their appearance to well timed to be a coincidence inferred what Rose was already suspecting: They were the giants counter-measure. Sandora were planning well, but this was not something Rose didn't anticipate either.

"Hold off the order till I say. I'll need you to gather some troops for protection." The two, followed by a few dozen defending soldiers were almost far enough away from the chaos to be considered bystanders now as Kongol continued to thin the invading forces. An ornate looking blocky store of sorts prevented her from gaining more distances, at least to the west, and she didn't have the time to reroute for a larger expanse. This would have to do.

Planting her sword into the soft snow below, Rose closed her eyes to focus and began to hum powerful words of magic, her hands moving in strange and obscure patterns. She felt her lifeblood ignite with the familiar sensation of hot, raw magic that pumped in her body alongside her blood, seeking a physical escape. Manipulating such destructive forces with both words and will, she began to bend the unrefined magic into the image she had in her mind. It wasn't easy, as strong as her magic aptitude was she wasn't a Wingly and it didn't come nearly as natural. Her spell was one of wide area effect, and that meant it would be several times harder than just a spell used to decimate a person or small group. Usually she would have to transform to form such a powerful spell, but she wasn't granted the luxury of time. The Winglies were already locked and loaded, ready to vaporise Deningrad's forces along with their most potent weapon in the form of Kongol.

"I'll hit them first, as soon as I do order a volley of as many arrows as they can manage in a twenty second window." Her breathing was harsh as the focus of the enchantment took its toll. Rows of dark projectiles that resembled black flaming arrows materialised in front of her from seemingly nowhere, first five, then ten, then as many as twenty or thirty. Opening her eyes and taking a moment to adjust her hazy vision, Rose spotted the five spell casters that were nearly on top of them. With a ferocious cry Rose flung her bunched arms to both sides as if to ward away an invisible enemy and the assembled black arrows fired towards her floating opponents.

Winglies, keen to the weaving of magic already knew it was coming before even seeing it. Projecting a kind of translucent shield that encased them like a huge bubble, her magic flared out as if doused in water upon contact.

"Now!" Rose seethed. Ramish hesitated a moment as Rose dropped her knees but gave the order with a flick of his overhead stretched hand. A hail of sharp projectiles followed Rose's spell path.

It was never Rose's intention to take the Winglies by surprise with her magic, as such a feat would be impossible, but rather create a distraction. As the Winglies found out when the needle sharp arrows entered all parts of their bodies, warding against magic, a kind of nether essence not naturally a part of this world didn't have the same effect as warding something physical that did. It was something she found out and exploited in great measure during the Dragon Campaign. To block one type of offense left you open to another, there was no such thing as a 'one shield to shield all' type of defence. Erecting barriers to stop magic left them open to normal attacks that passed right through as if the shield never existed. If given a few more seconds perhaps they could have created an offset, but the now falling spell casters were not afforded such an opportunity.

None of the Winglies survived the volley. It was a minor victory, but one that once more threw the pendulum of momentum back in their favour.

As visibility faded to almost non-existence all that was left was to kill the remaining enemy troops. They were not given further support, not on this evening, and by the time the slight dimness faded entirely and the only source of light left were the few house, store and streetlights left on in the event the battle would spill into the night, the defenders of Deningrad had claimed their first victory.

* * *

Zack, Miranda and Theresa saw it all from the side of the palace that oversaw the middle of town. It was surprisingly hard to quell the urge to run in and help, at least in Zack's experience, but every time he was on the verge of giving into such an impulse he felt the supporting hand of Miranda on his shoulder.

"Things are going well" she said softly with a confident smile. "There are no signs of being overwhelmed at this point, so put your mind for now."

"That's what worries me" Zack said, lightly shrugging off her hand an pacing around the throne room. "This attack force is minuscule to what they have in their arsenal, it's as if we're being lulled into a false sense of victory."

"Then all the more reason to keep your wits sharp and your emotions suppressed" the Queen said without sentiment. "The enemy is merely testing the waters, trying to gauge what they are up against. We know that, the troops along with Ramish and Rose know that. Tonight will just be a skirmish, the real war has yet to begin."

Zack shot a rather indignant look at Theresa's rebuking, and realised why Rose found her presence so unnerving and hard to deal with.

_But looking past that, she feels exactly the same as I do._

Shrugging the momentary resentment aside, Zack returned his view to the battle taking place below. Kongol was wreaking havoc and the opposing troops were quickly being slaughtered by the defending team who were taking expert advantage of the home ground advantage.

And so he watched. Watched fearfully as the Winglies entered the fray, and pumped his fist with a loud cheer along with the soldiers battling below as the enemy fell and the first battle came to a close. With the last soldier dead, Rose and Ramish began to order the troops around and as tired and weary as they likely were, after a small break they began to collect the dead of their own as well as their enemies. Dead Deningrad soldiers were carried into the palace while the enemy were unceremoniously dragged towards the entrance of the city for reasons Zack did not yet know. Nor did it matter, the elation of winning their first victory in such a defining fashion had everyone in high spirits, everyone expect two people who knew the storm had not even began to hit them yet.

Rose and Queen Theresa remained a stone face as they were when the battle began.

* * *

By eight of the clock everyone had rendezvoused inside the castle besides those on scout and watch duty. Most of the castle rooms had been turned into soldier quarters, but that was fine. Those not able to fight volunteered for roles like cooking food, medical duties and other housekeeping responsibilities. Massive plates of food and ale were passed around giant tables within the palace common quarter which was as large as the ground floor of Kazas. Candle and oil lights flickered within the shimmering sheen of crystal, which only added to the hardy ambiance of the well earned aftermath.

When the captain stood up, ale cup in hand, he raised it high and everyone fell silent.

"First of all" Ramish began, standing at the head of the giant spanning wooden table, one of the largest Rose had ever seen she had noted as she sat towards the rear, eating and drinking quietly. His voice carried well and had the presence of a true leader, and every Deningrad soldier turned attention to reflect that fact. "Let me congratulate us all on a sound victory! We have proven, although not without aid, that while we may small and removed from the main hub, we are a force to be reckoned with! Rejoice men, for we, a nation no strangers to war, have stood resistance in the face of overpowering odds!"

Roars, whoops and whistles exploded from the table as they all celebrated before dying down as Ramish place his mug of ale on the wooden table, his face turning stern.

"But this is only the beginning. Sandora has underestimated us once but they will not do so again! Expect every battle from here to be a far harder struggle then what we just went through. Fellow friends and family have already perished tonight and those numbers will only climb as the war escalates into its climax, that is an unavoidable fact of conflict." Ramish bowed his head a few long moments as if to mourn those who died and will die in the future. "But we hardy, strong and defiant. We will not falter, we will not hesitate! Save those who we can save and live with the memory of those who we cannot, and for every one of us they take we shall take two or three of them!"

Another roar of unified approval from the table.

"So eat until you burst, drink until you piss yourselves and talk until you cannot talk anymore, but men to this one thing: Keep yourselves sharp. Celebrate with those you may not get the chance to tomorrow, but stay sharp! This is only the beginning, and while they have great numbers, we can match that in spirit and determination! Whether they have tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands we will stand triumphant when it is all said and done, this my friends I can promise you! So eat, sleep and prepare for the next of many battles, this is no longer a request men but an order: keep yourselves sharp! For we shall press the next attack!"

A final roar of agreement spread once more, but this one did not die out for many hours as the victory atmosphere once more filled the common room. Rose couldn't help but let a narrow smile press her lips, he was a good talker if nothing else and it even managed to instil a piece of confidence in herself. None of them knew what they were in for as the war progressed, but they all felt like, at least for the moment, that they could take on anything in the world.

* * *

Zack, who had skipped on the victory party (partly because he felt he shouldn't be a part of a celebration he didn't contribute to, but mainly because he wanted time to think) was in the room he, Rose and Kongol were sharing. He was alone, at least for the moment, but his thoughts were startled by a knock on the door.

When a familiar dark figure appeared, Zack gave a smile and a nod. "How was the party?"

"Better than expected" Rose replied coolly. "I didn't intend to go to begin with, but Ramish thought it better for morale if I were to make an appearance."

"Did you make a speech?" Zack asked with a jovial tone and grin.

Rose shook her head. "No such thing, I left that to Ramish."

"Then looks like I didn't miss anything by not going then " Zack expressed in mock disappointment. Rose felt it unnecessary to rise to his good-humoured baiting and so the two fell quiet after exchanging those few words. Rose felt too tired in any event to discuss anything that wasn't of immediate concern.

"I know you don't think you're fit to lead, but given the circumstances thrust upon you I think you're doing exceptionally well" Zack said with a contrasting change of solemness.

"That remains to be seen" Rose said thoughtfully. "Ramish is the real leader here, all I've done so far is aid in some of the planning and end the lives of any enemies who veer near my blade. Ultimately my talents lay in killing, not leading."

"I don't just mean today, but since the very beginning. You may not notice it but you command admiration, even from the Queen as much as she would deny it."

Rose glanced away, her features faltering a little before returning impassive. Zack couldn't judge exactly what it meant, but it appeared somehow sad and rueful.

_Does she really have no confidence in herself? _no, that wasn't it, she had confidence, she just truly believed the role of leadership wasn't suited to someone like her.

"We still have a hard road in front of us, it is best we focus on what is ahead" Rose eventually responded.

"Indeed" Zack agreed with a smile. "But I've been doing some thinking and have come up with idea that may well weaken the enemy forces."

Rose appeared genuinely surprised, her upturned face shifting curious before sceptical. Zack didn't even need Rose to say what she was thinking, it may as well have been literally written across her face.

"This isn't a stupid as you seem to be expecting. Thinking about it; would Sandora expect us to make an immediate counter attack after our first skirmish? I think it more probable they are expecting us to regroup and solidify our defence in anticipation for another attack" he explained while nodding his head as if to somehow appear wise or meaningful.

"If you're supposing we launch an immediate retaliation then the same thoughts have crossed my own mind as well, as would it have whoever is commanding the Sandorian army. Their numbers are vast and we would not be able to catch them off guard even if we have better navigation of the forest, Sandora would surely have scouts posted to make sure of that. We would only be sacrificing much needed soldiers, our best offense at the moment is our defence where we can corral and control the enemy. We will be quickly overpowered in such a forest that allows easy access to flanking."

"Yes, I am suggesting _we _retaliate, but by we I mean us two and maybe a handful of others. Travelling as a small group will allow us to evade enemy scouts, and if we can fix a location of a few nearby camps then wouldn't you think it a shame if the forest around them suddenly caught ablaze?" Zack smiled proudly to show he has given this idea much thought.

"It won't be as simple as you suggest. They can also scout from the skies and any fire used whether natural or magical can be quickly extinguished by Wingly support."

"Perhaps, but if it's at night where they are not expecting such an attack their support will be delayed at best right? Even if we only manage to rattle them for the night that will prove valuable for the next fight when their soldiers are weary and sleep deprived."

Zack expected Rose to throw an immediate rebuttal, had expected that the hardest part of this operation was not the execution itself but convincing a certain lavender warrior that it would be the best course to take. When Rose fell silent for a time Zack allowed himself to hope.

"Creating such a commotion rapid enough to raze Sandorian encampments before help arrives would require the aid of magic, and strong magic. I have exhausted myself today already from earlier spells, to continue to do so would risk me becoming too fatigued to be of much use during future battles."

"I took that into consideration too. You won't be doing the one causing the commotion, I will be."

Rose frowned unhappily. "Your grasp on magic is flimsy at best, how do you intend to pull of such a spectacle? Even if you do, your inexperience leaves you open to exhaustion or worse yet over exhaustion where you may become sick or otherwise injured. Your participation in this war is just as important as mine."

"What you say is very true, but have a little faith in me I'll be able to pull something small like this off. After all, we cannot win this battle without taking some risks." Zack stared at Rose with determined eyes, letting her know he will not be swayed in this matter by such small consequences.

"It is no small matter. Magical essence is extremely complex made up of many compounds unknown to the typical human. It takes much time to reach the level where one can master magic without risk of consuming oneself and even then it is still a gamble. I, who has had over eleven thousand years to perfect the art still only use magic as a last resort. It only takes a momentary lapse and the magical essence inside you will suck you dry or cause your spell to combust, killing yourself and those around you. That is the peril that you chance when you use magic, especially in the case of the inexperienced. To even be able to summon magic you will need to be transformed, and an out of battle transformation is taxing enough on the body as it is. Do you really think you can handle that?"

She was testing him. If she sensed any weakening in his resolve or any doubt, she would call the idea off immediately and not give it another moments consideration. But he knew this too, even he knew about the basic dangers of magic during the few encounters he had when he was forced to utilize them. Granted none of them had really been from will but from necessity, but in the end he could only know if he tried.

Matching her grave gaze Zack gave a single nod, doing all he could to project his determination. In the end it must have been enough.

"Very well, I'll concede to your idea. We'll leave at midnight, just the two of us. And we won't be venturing too far from the entrance, we'll need to make a hasty retreat if all things go well."

"And if things don't go well?"

Rose gave him a look that said it all. If things didn't go well then they wouldn't need to worry about an escape route.

"Alright" Zack said, clenching his fist in victory. In his mind he certainly won one, as Rose for the second time today was willing to both trust and depend on him. Turning to Rose with a playful grin, all he could say was "I hope you can handle the heat."

A sigh that seemed to express momentary regret was his only response.


	22. Chapter 22: Counter Attack & Diversion

**Chapter 22: Counter Attack & Diversion **

As scheduled Rose and Zack left close to midnight, having briefed only the Queen, Kongol and Ramish of their impromptu counter attack. It took a little convincing, but not as much as Rose had expected, on the proviso that a small cartel of soldiers accompanied them to the gates and would wait at the gates for their return. Rose was fine with that as long as they traipsed no farther.

The night sky was looking as bleak and unforgiving as the hungering chill that seemed to yearn for what small warmth they could maintain within the frigid breezes. The stars were virtually nonexistent which made it all but impossible to peer past the mist like gloom that lingered beyond the lit braziers at the entrance of the massive gateway. Peering across all directions into the endless black showed no signs of light from the enemy in any form. It was as if they were like shadows that never existed.

"I didn't expect they would be managing without any kind of artificial lighting" Zack moaned softly. "I was counting on at least some kind of small torches as beacons for their locations."

"Just because we can't see any doesn't mean it doesn't exist. They could be shielded from our view by magic, or their camps may be much further in where the vast darkness suffocates the small flares of light from our current positions. We'll scout around a little to find clues." Rose turned to the dozen or so group of guards who acted as their escort and gave a single nod. Once the gesture was returned, the two of them disappeared into the dangerous black forest alone.

As they neared the edge of the light radius the entrance lights provided, Rose ignited the small metal candle lantern she was carrying with a wave of her hand. glass side panels protected the four exposed sides where the lights could emanate out of, but they were thin and would not shield against strong winds. Thus far the weather was breezy but not gusty. For both the sake of keeping their small light alive along with their body temperatures above freezing levels, they would have to hope it would remain that way. They were offered strong quilted and fur coats along with draping cloaks to ward off some of the cold, but for someone not native to the frozen land regardless of how much protection they had it would be impossible to combat all of the chill. Because of that Rose wanted to make this operation as quick as possible, to risk staying out in the cold invited untimely sicknesses like they suffered on their earlier journey to Deningrad.

"I'm doing my best to remember what direction we're travelling in but I can't promise that'll help" Zack said in a strained voice.

"Leave that to me, you just focus your mind on the task of utilising magic. The mind is where it all begins from after all."

Nothing else was said as they explored deeper into the dense Evergreen Forest. Talking would do them no good and only waste precious energy they needed trudging through soft snow and warding off the cold. It was eerily quiet save for the periodic sounds of leaves brushing together or the howling of a particularly strong squall that on a few occasions killed the candle lantern. No animal or monster noises, not even the flapping wings of birds or the cries of wolves could be detected. It was as if the arrival of the Sandorian army drove out every residence of the forest. No, it was as if the enemy's very presence was polluting the forest. It was a silly notion of course, but being out here in the shivering darkness of the Evergreens made it hard to get lost in grimness of her imagination.

"This is creepy" Zack muttered after the ghostly silence became too much to bear. They had been travelling for at least an hour, as much as two at most Rose would have guessed without any other way to ascertain time. Suddenly she saw something that caught her attention in the distance and came to a halt. It was hard to tell, but in the space ahead Rose thought she could detect faint flickers of oil lamps. Not just a few but many, almost outlaying a kind of clearing of sorts. After a few seconds she thought by Zack's grunt he must have seen it too.

"I don't know the limit of your power, and neither do you likely, but we must strike from as far away as possible."

"I understand that but the distance is still at least a couple of hundred meters or so. We need to be about half that distance before I can be sure."

Rose frowned. "That'll be too close. We'll be detected before we can make a move."

"Then I'll transform here then move closer. As diligent as they may be they will not be expecting an attack, not so soon."

"You can't be sure of that" Rose responded, the sinking feeling of paranoia beginning taint her perception. "For all we know we could be watched now as we speak." She didn't know if it was the forest, the coldness or being so close to an army so vast, but something was spooking her more than usual tonight. For one who usually relished the obscurity of the gloom this was very unusual to say the least.

Or was she simply fearing Zack's life? Scared that she couldn't protect him? Was that why she relegated him to defending, to keep him away from the frontlines where the chance of death was at its highest?

She didn't know. It shouldn't matter, a small while ago this was a man she drew her blade against and swore to kill as he laid helpless on the ground. All she did know was that she wouldn't rest easy until they were back inside Deningrad where she could get some much needed sleep and rid herself of these foolish uncertainties.

Zack meanwhile had drawn his Red-Eyed Dragoon Spirit. It shimmered in the darkness as he closed his eyes and began to focus.

"This is it" he announced, as if to verify this himself. "Here goes."

* * *

What was usually an almost instantaneous shift from human to Dragoon Knight was a intense process that took considerably longer. The source of internal energy that usually flared in the midst of battle that he grabbed onto to imitate the change was not a blazing flame like it usually was but a dying pyre threatening to expire entirely. Zack knew that if it did he would not be able to transform at all. Instead he could only focus on that small slither of energy and try to expand it by willpower alone. Like trying to hold a falling liquid, grasping and manipulating the density of magic energy was a task far greater than Zack anticipated. It was easily done when it was an instinctual reaction to danger, when it was life or death, but to replicate the process without the strain of immediate peril was something a novice like him found difficult if not outright impossible.

_No, I have to clear such thoughts as failure out of my mind. Focus Zack, focus!_

Rose, perhaps sensing his hardship lent a few words of courage.

"We all have the same capacity to use dragon magic, whether beginner or master, all that is different is our ability to make use of said magic."

Zack tried again to grip the flicker of dormant magic that would act as his ignition, his ember on top of a bundle of dry wood. If he could only set fire to his pool of magical energy he could force his transformation.

"Dragoon Transformations in particular feed of strong emotions of its user. Anger, fear, desperation, anguish, all of these sensations play a part in unlocking the way to exploit the sprits power. Try to invoke those feelings to aid your control over magic."

Focusing instead on images from earlier events that held significant impact, dead allies and soldiers, Wen's betrayal, the various times of helpless frustration he felt when he couldn't prevent the death of innocence or stop the rampage of enemies, he found himself succumbing to emotions held back by the gate of his desperate rationality. The flood gate cracked then shattered, releasing a surge of many emotions that consume him like a downpour. It was then he was able to turn the single flame of energy into an inferno, which consumed his body internally and externally. Groaning in concentration and mounting pain, Zack felt his body change in a familiar procedure as dragon spirit lent him its latent energy. When the storm came to a stop and his eyes opened, he was now a Dragoon warrior once more.

But it was different than usual. Waves of pain and fatigue crashed against him like the tides onto large cliffs, battering his body with every moment that passed. This mixed sensation was largely unknown to him when the primal flow of adrenaline and will to survive washed out all else. It made it hard to stay in form, let alone find the necessary strength to then cast a spell.

"The pressure is enormous" Zack said with a heavy face. He thought he might collapse at any minute.

"The spirit of the dragons feeds of the mind's insanity, which is at its peak during the clash of subsequent emotions that I described earlier. That is why during battle it is easiest to transform, when the body is focused on nothing but survival and will block out the strain you are feeling right now. Devoid of such jeopardy you have to face the weight of transformation without any mitigation. That is why it is hard to force a transformation for even someone like me who is experienced."

"I better get this show on the road, I don't think I can hold out for much longer." Every part of his body felt damp, along with aching bones in his arms, legs, neck and back. It was as if he had taken a blow from a massive sledge hammer. Enduring the pressure as well as he could, Zack leapt into flight, one strong wave of his massive wings propelling him towards the top of the massive Evergreen and then beyond.

His transformation didn't just grant physical additions, it lent him supernatural senses as well, his eyesight in particular showing him more than he could ever see as a human. High atop the skies Zack was able to spot four separate shapes of concentrated radiance, separated by many yards of trees. Deciding his targets quickly allowed Zack to strike at once, gathering immense energy with an ease that made his earlier struggle seem inconsequential. The trouble of being able to harness even a small trace of magic was erased with the help of dragon spirit, allowing him to wield it as easy as if were a sword. Four giant balls of immense flame grew to the size of molten boulders before sent hurling towards their targets, each one direction towards one of the four surrounding camps.

They didn't explode on the towns themselves, not directly, but atop the massive trees that sheltered them like giant limbs. Yet the many fragments of molten fire that did splinter through showered the camps like rain. Within minutes the unwary squads of enemy warriors were set ablaze by fires that rose to infernos. No matter how good their magicians, it would take a dangerous amount of time to save the few not killed by the conflagration. The obvious and immediate response was a simple evacuation of those they could save. The harm had now been done and all Sandora can do now is do their best to control the damage.

Wit then done a brief period of vertigo gripped Zack, the only clear thing he could hear in those few moments was the scream of Rose's voice.

"Zack! Come down already!"

The Red-Eyed Dragoon shook the daze away before descending to his beckoning comrade. As soon as he felt his feet hit the floor, he was hit with that same dizziness, only this time nausea mixed with intense pain followed.

"Zack! Let it go, transform back" Rose said with visible worry.

He was on all fours now, coughing up blood filled phlegm, his mind turning scarlet red.

"More" he snarled, sanding to his feet. Pain was now easily pushed into the review as the energy of his new found power spurred him ever forward. Yes, he could end this war easily now. It might destroy his body in the process, but with this power... he could even defeat Wen and put an end to this pointless violence, stopping this madness once and for all.

"I can end this" he felt himself declare confidently. He prepared to take flight once more, the pain no more than a distant twinge before being evaporated entirely by a redness that matched the colour of his ruby armour. Zack had some idea he supposed he was now at the mercy of his dragon spirit, that he wasn't totally moving of his own accord, but that wasn't entirely true either. While the spirit fed him with a brash hunger for conquest usually unknown to him, all it was doing in the end was giving him the power and confidence to do what must now be done.

Rose then appeared in his crimson vision, her weapon drawn and pointed towards him. Her cold blue eyes peered into him as if able to read his very thoughts.

"I have a good idea what you are thinking, and I won't let you do it."

All of his thoughts melted to fiery fury upon hearing those words. His emotions were like tinder requiring only the smallest spark to turn them aflame.

"We always have to do things your way, don't we!" he roared, suddenly hostile. Rose remained unmoved, as if expecting this all along. This only incited him further, her attitude always so haughty simply because magic granted her agelessness.

Although the him the time spent mulling over his fury to the point he realised his body had taken physical action appeared long enough to span a minute, in reality it was only a second or two. When his knee connected with Rose's unwary sternum Zack didn't know if it happened because he was too quick, lucky, or she simply didn't think he would really strike her. It didn't matter, she fell to the ground with a cry while he walked past her, his head high and staring skyward.

"I'll end this now, so just stay there and watch." He didn't face her as he said these things, he felt it unnecessary to do so. He had a task to do, he could kill Wen and put a stop to this war. "Unlike you I won't abandon those in need, and unlike you I will not continue this plan of run at any cost if the cost isn't worth the sacrifice!" He felt his blood cool a little as he turned his mind back to his real enemy. "When I find him I'll kill him before he can even react."

"Given a taste of your new found power first hand" Rose began coldly as she rose to her feet. "I can say with absolute certainty that you do not have what it takes to even scratch him."

Zack didn't turn to her so his face wouldn't display his realisation. Drunk off of foreign power and full of noble ideals, Zack was still able to decipher the meaning behind why he was able to actually land a blow on her unguarded. It wasn't his speed or power gained from his transformation, even with that advantage he expected her to at least partially make a block, but it was as he suspected. She had let the blow pass, as if to gauge his power for herself. The idea that she came to such a conclusion after one strike that was clearly pulled in the interest of her safety rekindled his fury anew.

"And I don't care if you kill yourself but if you do it you do so without the Dragoon stone" Rose finished with palpable enmity. Zack, fully aware that she was resigned to using force, turned, perhaps to either widen the gap or retreat entirely but was instead met with a blow that struck him from a place on his head or neck that he couldn't quite identify before everything turned from red to black.

* * *

As Rose lunged from behind to strike the small unprotected area of his neck and head, she was met with a moment of worry that she wouldn't reach him in time as his head began to turn, that his instincts and perceptions had increased beyond her expectations and he would merely shuffle away from her arching forearm. If she had waited a second or two longer that may have very well been the case, and as strong as she currently was there was no telling how she would fair against a Dragoon Warrior intoxicated off his own power.

Rose hoped it wouldn't come to being physical but in the end it was unavoidable. Rose knew it wasn't entirely him in control, he fell into what was known as Dragonlust, to let the dragon spirit's consciousness control instead of the other way around. His words weren't what drove her to strike him though but the urgency in which he needed to revert back, and the quickest way to do so outside their own willingness is to knock them unconscious where their body will do so naturally. The strike was hard to be sure but wouldn't do any lasting damage, the damage to his body however that Zack almost certainly suffered due to his prolonged transformation would. The only question now was how much.

Rose lifted his limp body on to her right shoulder and began to move towards Deningrad. The chaotic fire would prove to keep their attention long enough that she should slip through unnoticed en route, but she couldn't be totally sure and the added weight of a large man might slow her down enough to cause her trouble, but all she could do at the moment was run and worry about other matters as they arose.

But another matter did arise and it arose quickly. The wildfire spread quickly from the camp closest to them and was beginning to draw near their sides and rear, as if for whatever reason the flames wished to chase them specifically. If the enemy didn't get her then the fire damn near might.

It was scorching, the smoke making it almost impossible to breathe while moving at a quick pace. Her eyes watered as she perspired dangerous quantities of water along her journey back. She had no idea how long or far she had been moving but she knew she couldn't keep it up much longer. The smoke had grown so thick it was more certain to kill her before any of the nearby flames. But as bad as her situation was Zack's was still more dire. She could hardly feel the once rapid rise and fall of his body, Rose worried he would wither away completely before reaching the gates to their own stronghold.

_Where is it? We should be getting close. _But the thick blanket of smoke not only obscured her ability to breath but also her vision as well, the grey clouds of burning remains acting like a fog that wouldn't allow visibility beyond a few meters in any direction. For all she knew she wasn't moving the way they came back at all and that thought only added to her growing dismay.

Her legs were running out of strength. Shaking with uncertainty her brisk pace was turning less into a quick walk and more into a dangerous stagger. The added weight of a full grown male was becoming too much to bear in her current state.

"I can walk" Rose heard a weak voice say followed by a brief struggle of the companion she thought not only unconscious but dying. Too weak to give any real resistance she felt the weight mercifully slide off her shoulders.

"How... you shouldn't be conscious let alone moving" Rose stammered, covering her mouth with her hand in a vain attempt to filter out the smoke.

"I woke up a while ago but was too weak to move at that point. Instead I concentrated on light breathing to regain some mobility in my wrecked body." He let out a wry grin of confident determination. "I knew you wouldn't last, but I only have enough energy to carry myself the last leg of the journey. I'm sorry I had to rely on you for so long." His hand extended to take hers and he led her forward with shaky yet somehow stable legs that lent strength not only to him but her as well. This went on for about fifteen minutes Rose estimated upon future reflection, the cindering heat and choking smog making it hard to be sure, but eventually Zack managed to lead the two of them in front of the large hanging wrought gates that appeared like a beacon of salvation. once safety was in sight it was Roses turn to do be the supporter as Zack's body crumbled to the ground no longer able to keep itself upright nor conscious.

* * *

_Three months had passed since Zack's father Joseph had left for Mille Seseau. Zack's father had told his younger son that he was leaving to gather the ashes of his mother, to see the sight of the town's destruction, as well as bring her back to homeland soil._

_Zack may have been young and naive, but he wasn't by any means dull or dim-witted. He understood two things: That there were no ashes to recover, and that his father's real quest was one of revenge. Initially Zack was supportive of the idea, after all in his young mind his father was the epitome of valour and wisdom. While he may have only been a blacksmith by trade, he had witnessed his father on many occasions training with his well crafted weapons. He even promised Zack that he'd teach him how to wield weapons when the time came, but such a blissful memory seemed so distant, almost to the point of non-existence. _

_Now that such a time had passed, under the trusted diligence of his neighbour Durnan, Zack began to come to grips with another shattering truth: His father would not return to him. He wasn't aware how or why he knew, but he accepted the cold fcat of his last remaining parents death before the eventual news would reach him in another two months time. Assumed dead as one of the many crew members aboard the sailing royal flagship of Mille Seseau Queen Theresa The Second. Believed to be all but indestructible given the almost impenetrable steel that coated the largest ship at the time, that idea was soon proved false as it sunk beneath a pillar of ominous black flame. The Black Monster had now claimed both of his parents in the space of a year, as well as the new born Princess Louvia. _

_Red hot rage didn't grip him upon hearing the news he already knew true like it did when he found out of his mother's death. Instead only a cold caress of certainty filled him at that time, a burning desire that melted out all else. The only thing that kept his young fragile mind from breaking into millions of pieces was the idea of finishing what his father had began. he would grow up and grow up strong. Then he would have his revenge, not just for himself but in the name of justice, for all those that suffered at the hands of the creature known only as the Black Monster. _

_And so that night, alone in his bed he cried, allowing himself one night of weakness. After that the young Zack focused his mind on only one thing: being strong. he trained every day, both his body and mind so he may one day have the strength to avenge the loss that destroyed his childhood._

_And grew he did. As the days turned into weeks, and the weeks into months and the months into seasons every day was a trial, a test. He trained his body, he trained his mind and knowledge to be proficient in a wide arrange of weapons and situations. But his body and knowledge weren't the only things that grew as he aged. So did his ideals, one born from the notion of justice through vengeance soon turned into one of a much larger scale. News of wars, famine and cruelty not only from the Black Monster but from normal people around him added fuel to his burning idealisms that warped his existence to only one desire: The be a true visage of justice, to punish those who deserve it and reward those who earned redemption. It was a dream he always struggled with of course, after all was it really that righteous to assume the judgment and consequent condemnation of others, many of which are mere victims to circumstance? Zack realised the flaws in his ideals along with its arrogance, but as he was exposed more and more to the true ugliness of the underbelly of human nature, the more he was sure this world needed someone to mete out justice, even if the judge is imperfect himself. For in reality, the world as a whole is run by only one single law: The strong survive at the expense of the weak. His dream was to change that, to be a defender for those who cannot defend. To that extend every day of his life was mere preparation for a time he could become that avatar. It wasn't too long after that that Zack had a chance encounter with Wen, a man he thought shared his ideals, and all the subsequent events that would lead up to his current moments were put into place._

* * *

Zack awoke in the familiar bed chambers of the Crystal Palace. His dream, if you could call it that, it felt more like a distant recollection, scattered upon pushing past his waking grogginess.

_The sight of fire always seem to trigger them _Zack thought absently. What came next when he attempted to move was pain that wrecked his entire body, as if needles were stabbing into his every orifice. He would have screamed, but when he felt it build up in his throat that only made the surge of pain stronger, and so all he could do was bear the agony in self-muted silence. Images flashed into his mind of what he had endured when he transformed, and with a calm mind no longer consumed by the power his spirit lent him, he realised just how far he pushed his body. He was lucky to be alive let alone functional.

The pain would not abate by simply laying still. The act of breathing, the act of pumping blood through his body made him feel as if he being stretched out unnaturally from head to toe like a torture rack. The price of pushing his mind and body beyond its limits and then some was a broken frame, a shell of timber that's core was eaten out by termites. Following that thought pattern a much more terrifying notion followed. What if the damage was permanent? What if he was effectively broken, unable to ever take part in the war again?

After some thought Zack refused to relent to such an end. He had endured many things since travelling, many which should have at least left him crippled if not outright killed, so all he could do to hold onto the small dream he had which kept his core intact was to accept this as a temporary setback. He would endure and recover as he always did when he pushed himself too far. Exceeding his own limitations was nothing new to him, he had been doing so since he was a young boy. The only question now was how long would he be sidelined? He couldn't partake in the next offensive from the enemy, that he had come to grips with, but by the time the next ones rolls around he should be...

It was only then that he noticed upon glancing up at the sparkling ceiling of the palace that it was not dark but light. No, he had noticed this upon waking but now the idea that he may have not simply slept through the remainder of one night but perhaps two or three wedged into his mind. He may have missed a great deal more of the war then he would like to of, for all he knew things were so dire that -

Again, as he settled his mind he came to the realisation that things can't be as bad as he was beginning to think. If he was alive then at the very least the palace hasn't been stormed, and if anyone of importance died like Rose, Zack or the Queen then he thought he would have been notified by now. But still, he could only wonder at how much time had passed since he lapsed into unconsciousness.

_Sleep... _he thought distantly. There was still great pain, which was why he was so focused on his own thoughts so much, try and escape it, but it was no longer working. It was starting to consume all else to the point that the only escape now would be to fall once more into a slumber.

_I'm sure when I wake up I'll be a whole lot better. _And thus his final thoughts were hoped and prayed upon as his vision turned to darkness once more.

* * *

For a certain dark-haired woman sleep wasn't a luxury she was afforded for any more than a few hours at a time. Most of it was during the transition from that eventful night into sunrise, Rose made a calculated risk that Sandora wouldn't immediately retaliate until they settled their forces once more, but it wasn't something she could be totally sure of. It was also a possibility that Zacks counter-attack would spur the enemy's bloodlust further, but if anyone at the helm of their massive army has a level head like she was sure they had, they would bide their time, lick their wounds and engage once more on terms that suited them.

Such a time did not come until another three days passed. Rose and the defending soldiers were diligent in their scouting and monitoring of the enemy as best they could along with tending the wounded and keeping those who could fight rested and fed, but the ominous standstill was shattered on the dawn of the third day when the sun showed the first rays of rising over the peaks far towards the east. As if that was some kind of signal Sandora began its second siege attempt.

Rose and the main body of the army were of course awake and ready. As the days passed Rose become somehow surer and surer an impending attack was drawing ever closer, and if there was one then the most probable times for such an assault would logically be at sunrise or sunset. But the opposing forces knew that as well and Rose could only draw the conclusion that like the last skirmish they were in no way trying to catch Deningrad's forces by unawares. A brute force struggle again appeared to be the tactic.

As soon as the first soldier was spotted the sounds of human cries, bells and makeshift alarms swept the silent city, the mood shifting from wordless anticipation to almost frantic activity in a moment. But Rose and Ramish were ready in the same place as they were waiting during the first encounter. Archers were stationed atop large houses, buildings and the overhanging snowy ledges as well as ground forces scattered both outside and inside the main strip of chaining residences and trading stores. What they were facing this time however was very unlike anything they faced earlier.

Rows upon rows of marching warriors strode around eight abreast towards them with what appeared to be a limitless number following behind. So synchronised and in tune from the slight movements of their arms to the stamping of their feet were these soldiers that it was terrifyingly mechanical. Rose noticed at once that what they faced were in no way human, and given scowl that appeared on Ramish's face he probably knew it as well. None were garbed in heavy or even medium armour like thin mail or scales, only sleeved robes that ended at the waist followed by what appeared to be frayed pants offered what seemed to be scant protection.

An explosion of activity from behind the known warriors ended Rose's monetary evaluation of the new threats that pushed towards them. One explosion turned to two and then three as plumes of decimated stone and clay rose like a poisonous miasma as flecks of ice and snow showered them like rainfall. So strong were the sudden detonations that Rose could feel tremors from the frosty earth beneath.

"They're attacking the town!" Rose cried in alarm. No longer able to simply wait for the enemy to reach them Rose signalled for the offensive, leading the charge towards the source of the mayhem that appeared to come from edge of the town. Kongol, who was with them from the beginning this time, no point in hiding him now, followed immediately but the rest of the defence force hesitated for a brief time before Ramish rallied them onwards with a thick war cry.

Rows upon rows of packed soldiers barred their path, their dead eyes showing signs of unexpected intelligence. Rose immediately identified them as the typical genome soldiers they had always fought, but as they engaged the attack force that clashed against her own like two opposing wind forces creating a directionless cyclone it became apparent they were in no way the same.

Rather than move blindly to their slaughter these new, somehow improved hybrids used battle tactics as a normal military force would. Pushing when the advantage allowed and dropping back when it didn't, these artificial soldiers acted as a grounded unit unlike mere individuals. No, it was more than that, as the clashing of the two forces continued to rage it became clear that they were intent on merely defending, pushing the defending side back only as far as the area they first engaged. While this maelstrom of steel clashing against steel and steel cleaving flesh continued so did the obliteration of the city, beginning from the giant crystal gate and slowing moving inward towards the city's core. If they didn't manage to break through the force defending whoever were blowing up the infrastructure then with a totally levelled field and nothing left to hide in, behind or around, they would be at the total mercy of their outnumbering enemies.

But breaking through wasn't so simple. Besides the fact they were so cautious about holding onto the small ground they had they were hard to kill as well. Not totally unlike the other genomes Rose had encountered, they had the ability to continue fighting until their brain (of that's what they really had) was cut off from the rest of their body. Cleaved limbs, fatal cuts or stabs or even a pierced heart deterred these inhuman beasts not at all, and given their light clothing now clearly made to give them improved mobility it was hard land a strike that could sever the spine, neck of puncture the skull.

The next course of logical action to Rose was to resort once more to magic. But with both forces clashing so close to each other an attack that would destroy her targets would take a good chunk of her own forces as well. They were strapped for numbers as it was, to foolishly sacrifice them for the sake of a battle would only make the rest of the war that much harder.

_But if we don't progress past this battle there won't be another one _Rose thought furiously as she attempted to land a killing blow on one of the damn near immortal creatures. It evaded, her slice intending to cut the throat only glancing off its shoulder. Frustration and exhaustion began a dual assault on her body and mind as her forces began to shrink by the minute. These genomes weren't just resistant to damage but seemingly to fatigue as well, their strikes and charges as vigorous as they were at the beginning of the battle that had now spanned for what Rose could only guess to be close to a good thirty minutes.

"Ramish! Unleash the archers!" Rose urged as she fell back what became the safety zone. Behind a certain area known only to the enemy they would not pursue further, choosing only to stand as a wall, repelling only when acted against.

"What about our soldiers!?" Ramish responded with a horse voice.

"We'll try and get the majority of the to fall back, but we'll lose more men if we continue this pointless assault!"

A brief hesitation before he lifted his hand skyward and gave the known signal. Rose and Ramish then put their effort into trying to call those back to what Rose hoped was safe enough from the impending barrage of arrows, but it was impossible to compete with both the sounds of heated battle and the roars of nearing destruction with the few moment she had to before the inevitable bombardment. Only those close by would hear, those not so fortunate would be caught and skewered by their own allies. A regrettable action, but a necessary sacrifice to push on forwards and avoid total annihilation here and now. If she had the ability to protect those with magic she would, at least those close enough, but her strengths lie entirely in destruction without a spell for protection.

_If only we had the presence of the Silver Dragoon Knight _Rose thought ruefully but it didn't matter. An uncountable number of arrows sailed towards the battlefield, only moments away from killing friend and foe alike. All that's left to do was -

Then something happened that Rose didn't or couldn't have anticipated. These new specimens could now also wield magic, magic strong enough to erect a dome barrier around the entire battlefront. The arrows bounced away as if hitting a giant ringed-wall of sorts, the projectiles landing harmlessly outside the battle zone. This confusion created a momentary ceasefire from both sides, but the moments passed quickly and once the volley came to a halt the battle erupted once more as if such a disruption had never occurred.

"Rose, there's been sightings of a dark Sandorian among the enemy ranks. He hasn't been too involved in the battle but rather seems to be giving instructions. Perhaps he is a leader of some sort." Ramish came to her side and aided in pushing back the advancing army, every strike a possibly fatal one. Both Ramish and Rose shared the same idea. While these hybrids appeared more flexible in their attack patterns _someone _must be pulling the strings. If they were able to eliminate the ring leader than like puppet without a hand to guide them genome army may turn rudderless.

"Keep up the defence captain, I'll search for the soldier."

Before she could get a confirmation began to skirt the battlefield that still raged within the town centre. She noted absently that the havoc caused from further beyond had slowed almost to a stop, only sporadic flares of breaking constructions were detectable, but that was something to ponder about later. Right now she had a goal that could possibly turn the tide of the losing battle. Only time was now against her and she would have to locate her elusive target quickly.

Fortunately it appeared her target appeared to follow a similar sentiment. Away from the main body of her forces, the Sandorian soldier perhaps thought her vulnerable enough to launch a direct assault. Rose heard more than saw or felt a whistle of parting air draw rapidly close, and acting upon instincts that drove her actions before any proper thought she threw herself to the side and rolled over her shoulder before the rest of her tumbling frame followed. Something hard crashed into the icy ground where her body had not a few seconds ago stood, and when Rose rolled herself upright once more what she saw was a long chain with a spiked ball attached at the end embedded into the ice. The perpetrator of the would be lethal attack was a soldier obscured by an outfit so dark it appeared nothing more than a human shadow. Black eyes obviously augmented with fel magic under a shawl that covered all other facial features regarded her with excited anticipation. The rest of this soldiers body were covered in black and violet hide armour if Rose had the guess which left not one part of its body exposed. Strange glowing markings were engraved across the chest piece, cuffs, gloves and leggings which thrummed with malefic pulsations that Rose's sensitive receptors to the supernatural were able to feel like a palpable presence.

"You avoided it. Good good, no one thus far has been able to" the dark and somehow grotesque shadow said in a tone that was like a dying groan.

Rose glanced at the spiked ball and could see splashes of red. While the soldier may be in charge of rallying his owns troops he didn't seem to have a problem in imposing himself in his own battles. but this could prove fortuitous, as killing this field here and now would allow her side to take the advantage.

But as things always were the practice side of the theory wasn't so simple. What stood no more than twenty meters away was a different type Sandorian elite, also known as the Sandorian Shadows. Dangerous not only because of their superior fighting capabilities but because they had undergone experimentation below the castle where such procedures had become the norm, these once normal if gifted warriors underwent a transformation thanks to dark and twisted magic, the end result was more a monster than a human. But that was what made such creatures dangerous, formidable even to a veteran like herself these soldiers who were conventionally more adapt in the art of assassination than front line fighting were hungry, always hungry for more souls to sustain the fel energies that gave them their power. Such procedures had reportedly came to almost a halt due to the fact the transformation left the warriors completely insane and totally dependent on dark magic like a drug addiction, and like any other junky in this world they could not be entirely trusted. Of course with Wen at the helm now such abominations would fit his already band of inhuman travesties perfectly.

The long chain and studded ball was pulled back towards the shadowy assassin and that was Rose's signal to move. She dashed towards the crouched figure who resembled a prowling panther ready to strike an unwary prey with the intent to strike her foe before he could get off another attack.

She was close, her speed seeming to surprise even the Sandorian elite, but he was still able to toss the iron spiked ball towards her as she was breach the last couple of feet. Rose, who was ready for such an attack this time around evaded the projectile that propelled towards her like an arrow would from a bow, and with his weapon now no longer able to reach her she readied to deliver the killing blow.

The chain which had until a few moments been attached to the ball wrapped around her arching arm just below the elbow. The spiked ball he threw towards her was a mere diversion, the chain which was once tied to it was the real trick and the action took rose off guard and halted her advance, and with a satisfied growl the dark warrior hopped back some distant, his hands still wrapped around the long chain that had ensured Rose's arm welding her weapon. Pulling the chain back towards himself Rose had to plant her feet to stop from being ripped off balance, and so a brief power struggle ensured between the two enemies. Rose, despite her smaller frame boasted considerable strength and was able to match her larger enemy's seemingly superior power, but the iron chain that had coiled around her forearm like a snake began to burn as if the iron had been heated to a dangerously hot temperature. Enduring the pain momentarily Rose shifted her weight from pulling to pushing, springing forward to drive another assault with the chain still fastened around her arm dragging behind her. Luckily the weight wasn't anything too significant to cause any major slowness in her movements, and the apparent switch from defence to offense caught the elite off balance long enough for Rose to thrust her sword into his chest, entering the front end and exiting the back.

But her eyes were already scanning for the next enemy, the commotion of battle still too close to discount any surprise attacks from one of the many fighting enemy soldiers. As she surveyed the scenery, her apparent battle seemingly not only taken from another area from the main melee but from another dimension showed no one else was interested in challenging her. Due to her overzealous desire to push forward it took Rose a few precious moments to realise her slain enemy was no longer solid. The mass of haemorrhaging tissue, organs and muscles where her sword had only a few seconds before been lodged had vanished, leaving only a dripping dark liquid that pooled at her feet around the fallen chain.

Even for creature as twisted as the one she faced this was no natural death. Rose immediately understood it was either some kind of illusion or the elite had somehow staged a retreat in the time it took for her to trust her blade.

A sinister laugh crackled from behind her, Rose spinning in the direction and readying her weapon at once.

"If you had only been distracted a few seconds longer I could have taken your head." the voice said in a murky tone that was neither masculine nor feminine but something in between. Rose had assumed her foe a male at first, but now it was impossible to tell. Arming whatever itself with two long silver knives the two engaged each other once more only to reach the same outcome once more. Rose would deal what should be a killing blow only to have the body melt into a dark nothingness as he or she reappeared some distance behind unharmed. This went on for a while, Rose estimated she had killed at least eight clones, and as fatigue began to ebb away at her slowing limbs she found herself wondering if his illusions were limitless.

_Foolishness, there has to be a limit to his power _she thought furiously. The siege continued to clash around them as if they were external, and Rose found herself wondering if the other soldiers were on strict orders not to interfere. The attacks were relentless, upon destroying a close another took its place immediately and rushed at her. The illusions themselves were not easy to vanquish either, they seemed to learn her attack patterns to pass on to the next phantasm, never making the same mistake twice. Needless to say finding eight different ways to kill such a foe was increasingly difficult to say the least. She wasn't going to have a choice at this rate but to use her precious reserves to transform with would leave her weak in the upcoming battles.

_I have no choice, I'll be killed otherwise._

But before she could begin to muster the energy needed to change, her latest clone stepped back, drew in a breath and made a deafening cry that sounded animalistic. Apparently having some unknown reason to them but a perfectly comprehendible message to the enemy, the forces remaining with the battle front froze a moment before suddenly pulling away, retreating the way they had come. Deningrad defends were left flabbergasted as their enemies literally turned tail to withdraw. The only one unmoving amidst the stampede of Sandorian soldiers was the Sandorian Elite, cackling manically.

"Our work here is done, in your bravado foolishness you have left yourself defenceless behind these wall of impudent defenders. While it is regretful we could not reach an outcome in our duel, I'm sure we will meet again." The apparition dispersed in dark mystic haze, he or hers laughter echoing as it faded.

But Rose was already running, understanding at once that the castle had been breached. With a loud whistle as she passed a stunned Kongol, he too followed her, his vacant confusion turning to furious intensity. He probably knew it as well, it was all clear now why they were so intent on only holding the back half of town. They forced us into a desperate approach when they began to set the city ablaze, prompting the defence to shift more into defending the front lines than the castle. Rose would have realised this at some point, but the Elite played it's part well, making sure to keep her distracted long enough to storm the castle. She could only make her way towards the palace as fast as she could, and hope they didn't hadn't killed the Queen.

Or worse yet, killed both Miranda and Zack and extracted two of the three needed Dragoon Sprits.


	23. Chapter 23: Loss

**Chapter 23: Loss **

The enemy came in from everywhere, the stairs to the throne room, the stairs leading above, the splinters of broken fragments upon the crown of the palace that was sustained during the rampage of the Divine Dragon allowing what looked like a kind of Sandorian special forces to corral the defending side from all angles. They surrounded the chamber in minutes, leaving only The Queen, the three Sacred Sisters and a handful of supporting soldiers to guard against an ever increasing attack force.

Somehow Zack was on his feet, his ruined body protesting at every movement. He felt more then saw the actual intrusion at first, but when he spotted soldiers being lifted by flying Wingly that acted as a flying mobile device, Zack knew at once the throne room was under attack. Moving his body out of a desperate determination and nothing else, Zack made it to the throne room only minutes before the rest of the Sandorian special unit enveloped the Queen's chambers.

"My Queen, please stay behind me and follow the path I carve out with my sisters."

Theresa wasn't given a chance to respond before Miranda began pumping arrows as fast as an automatic crossbow. Imbuing them with spectral energy her arrows would often splinter up to four times, allowing a single arrow to kill quad triple the amount, any kind of thick plated armour having no effect on the magical nature of the projectile. Special unit or not these soldiers lost nearly a half of their squad in a few short minutes of battle. Zack could only stand in wonder as a harsh voice snapped him back to reality.

"Are you just going to stand there? Give me a hand!" Miranda urged as she continued the one woman barrage. Steeling himself for what was going to be an incredibly painful ordeal, Zack readied his spear that had been left next to his bed and charged towards a group of enemy soldiers, each muscle throbbing painfully with every movement. It was an impossible battle, his clumsy spear struck only air and he felt a rain of blows strike his exposed head, neck and back. Zack fell to the crystal surface with a limp thud, completely incapacitated and at the enemy's mercy before his spear could halt even one enemy.

Miranda's barrage came to a quick halt when she realized both her younger sisters and the Queen were held at sword point, ready to be executed at a given order.

"You understand what is at stake now I take it?" one of the many lightly garbed soldiers said as he walked towards a hesitant Miranda. "At first I was happy for you to merely surrender your Dragoon Spirits but upon watching you slaughter many of my good comrades, I'll also have to ask you surrender your life as well. I'm sure I don't need to explain the consequences of impertinence do I?"

Zack flared at this point, doing all he could to get to his feet and stop what was about to occur, but all he earned were swift kicks to his torso every time he moved from his lying position.

"You take my life and the Dragoon Spirit and will you end this war?" Miranda questioned sternly.

"Miranda!" Theresa said in a hard tone, the one word carrying many more in its meaning to the Sacred Sister. Miranda could only look at her Queen ruefully.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple, we still have two other prizes we must claim. But I swear to you this, hand over your life and dragon stone and I'll call off the assault for today. You'll save your allies lives as well as earn some breathing room, fair trade, no?"

The young commanders dialogue was silky smooth, not unlike Wen in its ability to almost have a hypnotic affect on how you think. It was obvious she was actually considering the trade.

"Miranda don't listen! Zack pleaded but it only ended with more boots to his sternum.

"Stop it! I'll do it!" Miranda begged, her will broken yet her resolve absolute. "You had better stay true to your word mongrel."

"Just because we are the enemy does not mean we are without honour. The deal will be made good on my admirable martyr, rest assured."

The soldier presumably in charge of proceedings on Sandora's end moved towards her, removing a knife from his leather belt. The room had fell so silent that the reverberation from the knife being unsheathed was like that of a bell being struck. The solider, who like the rest were covered in head to toe with black rawhide that reminded Zack vaguely of Amika moved behind Miranda who followed with her eyes but not with her body. She was truly resigned to her fate.

"Miranda, this is foolishness! Your death will achieve nothing!" Zack fumed, although his hoarse voice failed to carry his cries with the vigour he would have liked.

"You are wrong, warrior of the Red-Eyed Spirit. Before I am a solider of war I am a solider of my Queen, even before I am her daughter. As any other soldier of this nation would, I will lay down my life if it means the protection of hers."

"How can you be sure they'll keep good on their word!?" Zack responded before being introduced to a new series of violent kicks.

"If they assassinate the Queen then they will have an angry and desperate army with an unquenchable thirst for revenge. Nay, the entirety of Mille Seseau will converge upon this paltry army once the news spreads, along with the Icy Ancients themselves. They will bring upon their own defeat if they slay my Queen in such a dirty manner."

Zack could no longer rebuke her unwavering tenacity. She had made her choice, and no one, not even her Queen could speak her out of it. Once more the inconceivable fact that he would once more lay down helpless to stop another comrades death weighed against him like a boulder.

_Goddamn it I have to do something!_

But before he could even begin to think of a way to get them all out of this hopeless situation, Miranda's shocked whimper escaped her lips as the crescent shape of the dagger slipped into the upper portion of the spine towards the base of the skull with the ease of axe slicing through a thin sheet of wood. It was a precise execution as promised, the knife entering and then twisting forty-five degrees in an effort to instantly sever the Brainstem. By the way her body suddenly went as limp as a marionette without strings, the soldier was successful, her body falling and crumpling at the floor, unmoving. Zack didn't know if the kill was truly instant or if she took a minute or two to actually die because a film of hot, red fury encompassed his every thought. Miranda's killer appeared to notice this at once and turned his attention towards him.

"Hold him down, I don't want to take any chances. If he shows any signs of trying to transform or summon magic, kill him at once. We need his dragon spirit as well."

Dropping to one knee the soldier began to rustle through Miranda's clothes with no point of urgency. After a minute elapsed and he didn't find what he was looking for his movements became much more frantic, cursing under his breath as his search continued to prove fruitless.

"She doesn't have the stone on her" he announced irritably as the soldier rose to his feet. He turned to both Zack and Queen Theresa. "One of you must know where she stashed it away. Tell me now or I'll start executing your fellow warriors one by one." His hand gestured towards the couple of dozen or so Deningrad defends being held hostage much the same way Zack was. "Starting with this one." The Sandorian commander moved to one of the helpless guards being held at sword point and sliced his throat with the same curved knife that ended Miranda's life not a few minutes before. The Deningrad defender fell to his knees, his hands covering the deep cut in his throat that leaked blood like a waterfall, before the feeble fighting came to a slow end as the soldier slowly asphyxiated on his own fluids.

Something inside Zack snapped, broke apart like a piece of glass shattering after being dropped from a considerable height. Zack was no longer a stranger to vile slaughter, but it was the first time he had been rendered utterly helpless to prevent it. While never had been so idealistic to be able to save everyone he was always able to save at least someone, even if it meant only saving one out of a thousand. In this instance he could help or save no one and it was happening right there in front of him. This thought drove him to a breaking point beyond desperation where such trivialities of pain from broken bones, torn muscles and severed tendons were periphery. He had some vague idea that what he was reaching for was the energy coming from his very life force, energy that would leave him as dried up and depleted as an exhausted well, but even the realisation of his own demise would not deter his next course of action. If he had to destroy himself to stop this pointless slaughter than it was a penalty he was more than willing to pay.

An unseen but very tangible pulse shockwave out from around him. The soldiers on both sides all felt it and didn't realise at first what the source of this strange seemingly telekinetic power was, but when a sudden rise in temperature so sharp that those within a meter radius were forced to retreat or have their skin melted from their bones occurred almost instantaneously, the special forces captain fixed his attention on him once more.

"Kill him" he growled, but no one made a move as Zack unsteadily got to his feet. The Red-Eyed Dragoon warrior felt like he was within another consciousness, similar to when he fell into the intoxicating stupor of power offered by his last transformation, but not quite the same. He was still himself, at least in some parts, but he also wasn't at the same time. Instead of his spirit struggling for control each time he pooled from its infinite reserves of power and energy the spirit simply merged _with _him rather than against him. This opened up a whole new realm, one that felt both foreign and natural.

"We can't get near him!" One of the other soldiers cried they continued to give him wide birth. "He's heating this place up like a damn furnace!"

The enemy broke ranks, allowing the defenders to quickly go on the offensive despite the bizarre turn of events. To them it didn't matter if hell literally broke loose around them, their Queen was in danger and that took precedence over all else.

"Guards, get the Queen and escape to safety" Zack ordered in a tone that was flat yet dangerously close to erupting. He then turned to the enemy. "I give you all once chance to leave if you wish to survive. Ignore this warning and you have brought upon your own fate." Finally his gaze set upon the commander, his unreadable features turning to one of disgust. "You will have no such mercy. You have sealed your own fate with crimes punishable by only death."

Then with a horizontal slash of his hand the captain's body combusted into a pillar of flame. His painful cries echoed off the crystal walls of the palace as his body was quickly reduced to nothing but burning ashes.

The rest of the enemy forces could only gape at Zack who was surrounded by a small field of distorting orange-red heat, permitting no one to get near him without risk of instant incineration. One tried to throw a pointed dagger, but the metal melted into nothingness before it had any hopes of reaching his body.

They then scattered like frightful insects, rushing out of the corridor like exit as fast as their legs would allow them. The thought of destroying them to thin enemy numbers crossed his mind for a brief time, but he quickly dismissed it, deciding he had seen enough carnage for one day. Unlike surrendering himself to his spirit the previous time he had not the feral thirst for blood, of that his mind was as it had always been. When he was sure the enemy troops were not devising some form or trickery or ambush, Zack began towards the exit himself, intending to impose himself on the battle that was raging outside. he didn't know how long his body would hold up for before it too would disintegrate like those he set ablaze, but perhaps he had the time to put a stop to more bloodshed, at least on this day.

"Zack that is enough."

Deep in his own thought Zack failed to notice a presence from above him. He turned slowly towards the source of the call, knowing who it was at once. It was Rose, her body fused with her dragon spirit, her violet-blue armour shimmering brilliantly against the backdrop of the crystal ceiling . She floated descended towards the ground effortlessly, although her face showed signs of the struggle of what it must have cost to get here.

"The battle is over, the enemy is retreating. If you haven't already pushed your body beyond its limit you will do so shortly."

Zack didn't know how long she had been watching but he thought it couldn't have been long. She must have only just slipped in, likely from the punctures in the high walls atop the palace.

"I think we both know I'm far beyond my limit. I don't have much time left, so I must find a way to use it constructively." He considered attempting to transform himself but knew that would prove pointless. He would immediately extinguish what little reserves he had and would only achieve his own fatality. "If you can help me then I might be able to end this."

Rose glided towards him and gave him a sour glare. "Have we not already had this conversation yesterday? Do I need to knock you out once more?" She was close enough to do so now, her body seemingly unaffected by the scorching heat that radiated out from his body like a forge. Zack returned the stare with one that made Rose visible flinch, if only by a fraction. Yet it did not go unnoticed, his blazing eyes examining her while taking in every tiny detail. He then closed them with an exaggerated sigh.

"I have saved who I can and the war has regressed into a standstill, I suppose I have done enough." And he thought he had, relief flooded him as weight of his failures alleviated. He would only last a minute or two he suppose before the very fire that saved everyone else would engulf his fragile body, but in the end he regretted nothing.

Zack thought he should say something to Rose, perhaps that the rest would now be up to her, but he felt it was unneeded. She would and had always planned to carry on in the first place, his existence wouldn't change a thing. In a way he did have one regret after all. The regret of having not a parting word to say despite their companionship, even if it were turbulent for the most part.

As if to soar through the clouds that hovered above without any regard for the chaos that had transpire below, Zack felt his body grow weightless before his vision dimmed, flickered briefly like a lit spark, then die out completely.

* * *

Rose caught his body before it could crash upon the unforgiving crystal surface of the ground below to cause Zack's body further harm. His body was radiating a heat so intense that once she did catch him she had to immediately place him on the ground for fear of being burned herself. The Crystal floor, a spanning collection of different stones and rocks thought to be virtually indestructible from all but the strongest of forces turned orange red, trails of evaporating minerals smoking up from his scorching body. For a moment Rose actually thought that the crystal would really melt, which would be a wonder in and of itself as no amount of heat, manmade or magic has been able to thaw even weakest of crystal within the palace. But that distant wonder was quickly dismissed when she realised what that must mean for Zack's body, which was a miracle it wasn't yet reduced to mere ashes.

Yet Zack wasn't the only problem on her mind, as scores of soldiers returned to the throne room after they had presumably taken Theresa and the other two Sacred Sisters to a safe place they surrounded the bloody and lifeless body of Miranda, many kneeling down as if to be entirely sure that her life had come to an end. Once it was confirmed and unsettling silence filled the giant chamber. Rose felt deep regret and anguish tear at her heart despite the fact that the moment she spotted her old comrades corpse she knew she was a soul beyond saving. If only she had been faster, if only she had realised the enemies now obvious motives quicker. As Zack's body slowly cooled to a normal body temperature she did a quick search for any obvious wounds that may need attention. She could find none, only the internal wounds he suffered from his attack on the Sandorian camp earlier remained. His breathing was a little laboured but showed no signs of what should be a life and death struggle. Exhaustion gripped him more than anything else.

Time passed in a haze as Rose let her own body return to its normal state, cradling Zack in her arms as she tried to plan the next course of action. Eventually, once it had been clear that the enemy had withdrawn completely the three of them plus the second eldest's (now eldest you could say with the passing of Miranda) blind escort all gathered around, the surrounding soldiers parted like the tide. Theresa wore a grave expression but held stern, Luanna, the second sister who Rose scarcely saw and Zack had not at all, was blind from having her eyes burned out and was incapable shedding tears. That was left to Wink, who held back her sorrow not at all as she cradled her elder sister's corpse to her chest and howled. This went on for a small time before Theresa pressed a hand on Wink and gave a firm nod full of untold understanding. Wink returned it, wiped away her tears with the back of her palm in a gesture that was surprisingly graceful given the circumstances, and stood up.

Finally the Queen turned her regard towards Rose for a brief period. Their eyes met, Theresa's grey ashen eyes appearing hollow as if all the life had been sucked dry from within, then turned to one of her royal guards and murmured an unheard order. Three guards shuffled towards Rose's location, picked up the unconscious Zack and told her they were taking him in for medical treatment. The Queen's party too moved out, a group of four soldiers lifting Miranda's cadaver with the care as if holding a holy relic, and they too began to march towards the exit, their itinerary unknown. Then it was just Rose, who hadn't moved from sitting on both knees, her eyes distant. It was true to say on the best of times Rose and Miranda never exactly saw eye to eye, but that didn't change the fact she was one of the seven who went through so much to save the world from annihilation. Her feelings of hidden sorrow was compounded further by the deaths of Albert, Haschel, Meru and Shana, a group of warriors she thought nigh invincible. But the feeling that assailed her mind the most was that of guilt, it had always been and likely always would be guilt. Those around her that deserved to live died, while she herself, a monster deserving not a single lifetime but had been granted endless, lived on. Watching her comrades no matter what the age or time never got any easier for her, all she had learned throughout her extended life was how to better mask them. To show weakness, especially from within was to invite an internal chaos she had kept at bay for so very long that would utterly consume her.

More time passed, and she finally stood up, her face stoic once more. She had given herself enough time to grieve and mourn, it was time to put such thoughts aside, to bottle them in a jar that had to be close to overflowing. A war still had to be fought, a battle still had to be won. To cave into her inner megrims now would only result in future losses. The only consolation she could bring herself as she exited the empty throne room to get herself some medical treatment was that whatever pain the enemy had inflicted upon them now, she would return ten-fold. After all, the demon inside her had yet to truly be unleashed.

* * *

In a stark contrast to the general mood of the Deningrad army after their first victory where most were jolly and full of confidence, the aftermath of the second encounter left everyone dour and sapped of morale. It wasn't the worst case scenario of course which would have included the loss of their revered Queen, but it had been the next worst: The loss of a well respected Sacred Sister who was the bastion of good will, determination and perseverance. Given her exploits that destroyed the ancient nemesis of man-kind Melbu Frahma she reached a near mythic status that in some ways outshone the Queen, and her loss scarred the defending side deeply, a wound that would likely continue to haemorrhage for a long time to come.

Rose had checked on Zack briefly in the treatment centre. To her surprise he needed little medical attention, magical or otherwise, as his body appeared to do the healing for them. Rose understood what this meant at once, despite the medical personal's confusion, but kept silent. he had formed a harmonic bond with his Dragoon Spirit instead of a bond that revolved around a fight for control and domination. As such he could easily dip into the reservoirs of his spirit's magic without any real repercussions even on an unconscious level. This in turn accelerated his natural rate of healing, gave his mind and body superhuman endurance beyond that of a normal person and would allow his access to far stronger magics at a much smaller cost.

What puzzled Rose was how? Or rather, how so soon? Usually to become so in tune with a dragon's spirit to the level Zack was now displaying took an entire lifetime to achieve, sometimes even longer. Most of comrades, both from the distant past and ones from the present only displayed a synchronisation of around fifty percent at best. Rose herself took over a centenary to attain utter mastery of her Dragoon Spirit, and that was with the help of Wingly magic. The only exception to this rule was Shirley and to a lesser extend Shana, simply by virtue of their shared benevolence with their dragon sprit that allow them an almost instantaneous inherit connection. Yet Zack displayed signs of mastery that should take him many many years, that much was proven by the way he was able to utilize magic so intense in the throne room he should have had to be in his Dragoon Form to even conjure half the energy. Added the fact he was half conscious from the intense pain of his broken body, such a feat either way should have been all but impossible. Even if she supposed it was a one in a life time miracle, an act of desperation in a dire time, it should have resulted in his immediate death, either by incinerating his own body or the drainage of his life-force. The only apt conclusion Rose could deduct as he lay in a bed looking no more strained than a sleeping child was that he was not using his own energy but that of his Dragoon Spirit. Given his weakened state both physically and mentally he would be unable to bridge that connection by force so that meant his spirit gave him the energy willingly. Yet he displayed none of the previous side effects of Dragonlust nor a loss of control of his body or mind, he was himself right down to the core that much Rose knew. Something must have happened while she was on her way to the icicle citadel. Something so profound and frantic that the dragon spirit must have looked deep into his soul and accept its master right then and there. Such a thing so soon until now had been unheard of...

But she would have to mull over this revelation at a later time. A Eulogy in Miranda's honour before she would be sent to the afterlife by way of cremation as custom to any soldier, whether a hero or not, had to be attended. And if required, she may have to give a speech to placate the anxious soldiers if the situation warranted.

This particular event was held within the rear palace courtyard, a considered holy ground where those whose actions in life spoke of heroic endeavour were admitted by way of large plaques and tombstones, depending on both valour and heritage. It was more a crystal graveyard than anything else, the rear guarded by the ever present spires of the Crystal Palace, the rest rounded off by the overhanging icy snow peaks that towered seemingly just as high. Despite this the courtyard, which could be more aptly defined as a large snow field filled with many artistic markings of heroes past had a somehow haunting presence to it. In the middle were the largest of monuments, large crystal-fashion sculptures of detailed kings and queens of past, and from there smaller yet still significant grave markings spanned out, gradually getting smaller the further away they were from the royal statues within the centre. Miranda had already earned small crystal plaque just outside the radius of the royal circle, the highest honour one could achieve in death who had not in some capacity during life taken rulership of the province of Mille Seseau, and as the eulogy commenced the small plaque was promised in the future to one day be a brave sculpture of Miranda standing firm with her bow notched back as she stood during the last moments of her life. Inscribed upon the tablet in a strangely lavish cursive style simply read:

'_And here lay Sacred Sister Miranda. _

_One of the heroic seven._

_Loyal in life as she was in death.' _

Above that sat a large collection of crossing timber, leaving the centre a large enough space between the interlocking wood to place Miranda's now pale corpse. She had been cleaned of blood and placed in a long white regal dress that in Rose's opinion looked unbefitting of someone with her personality.

_She would likely hate the idea of being forced into something so impractical, even if it were ceremonial _Rose thought sourly as she stood upon the hundreds of close friends and family that had been invited to her funeral.

Ramish gave the initial speech, one which was brief yet somehow befitting. He spoke purely about the capacity he knew her in: her ferocity in combat.

Next up to stand before the bed of stacked timber was Wink, the youngest sister. She spoke about cherished memories and what she learned from her less naive older sister, broke into a momentary sob, then place down a unknown pendant on the grave marking that must have held some significance to either herself or Miranda, if not both of them.

The second last of the speeches came from Luanna, while technically the eldest of the sisters in order of which they were adopted (Miranda after all had been adopted last, although this was never mention in any of the speeches) spoke humble and with much dignity and grace. Guided by her aide Setie, a smaller and rather meek looking woman who while technically considered a Sacred Sister by extension of her constant watch and guidance over Luanna who was absent sight, protested against this bestowment vigorously, claiming merely to be no more than a glorified helper or maid. This only added to her popularity however, her total lack of ego and self image a charm all of its own.

Luanna, her long lavender hair that tumbled down her shoulders in many ways similar to Rose's spoke on behalf of both her and Setie, who avoided the spotlight almost to the point it was a phobia. Luanna's tone was serene, the polar opposite to Wink's earlier hysteria, and it had a calming effect which seemed to wash over everyone, Rose included. She spoke the longest, perhaps knowing the power of her own melancholy and spoke about no one topic in particular but a collection of memories and stories both good and bad.

Once Luanna and Setie left the front of the gravestone and wood bed which cradled Miranda's corpse like a strong caress from a loving parent that acted as the makeshift podium, the Queen herself took to the stage.

"I thank you all for attending this unfortunate occurrence. In a war fatalities are always expected, but they always seem to hit hard when it is someone close that has fallen, especially a larger than life soldier such as the one who now lay's lifeless behind me. Of Miranda, my precious daughter, I have no more words. My other daughters have said all that has needed to be said, and those of you that know her need not have to hear words to understand what a tragedy this truly is." The Queen paused again, whether to gather her thoughts of for added effect Rose wasn't sure.

"Instead I will turn our minds towards the reality ahead that must be face. Miranda is dead, and while we must mourn her, we cannot do so at the expense of losing the war in front of us. It was a devastating blow but not a mortal one, we are still very much alive, and like a ferocious animal now cornered and wounded we will retaliate with renewed verve. Keep her in your hearts as you strike back at the enemy, keep her in your hearts as you defend your city and country, keep her in your hearts as you fight gallantly to stop the very same fate happening from your daughters, sons, mothers and fathers. Take the small time you can now to lament, but then steel yourself for what will surely be an even larger struggle ahead. The enemy will surely attack ruthlessly now that they expect we have received a debilitating strike, but that will also mean they will be at the height of overconfidence. Let us show them firsthand what it means to make an enemy out of Mille Seseau, to make an enemy out of the Deningrad Legion!"

Quiet murmurs of consent forked across the gathered crowd.

"For now let us have a minute of silence, not just for Miranda but for all those that have perished, then it will be back to guard and battle preparations on a rotational basis." She turned to Ramish who was standing at the foremost of the crowd along with the Sacred Sisters. "I trust you have that under control."

Ramish bowed deeply. A silence filled the entire courtyard for a minute as promised, then Theresa followed by the Sacred Sisters and the royal guard departed, followed slowly by those in attendance.

_An admirable speech _Rose thought respectfully. The loss of her daughter must have iced her very core, yet above being a mother she is a Queen, and at a time when they need her the most she must step up and inspire those whose spirit has been dampened, to be the giant anchor that stops the boat that is the Deningrad people from floating away into a sea madness. She can show no weakness, show no negative emotions in front of the people that need her stability. Behind closed doors she can release her emotions as she sees fit, but in front of the citizens that need her now more than ever she must be strong, stronger than anyone else, stronger than the gods if it comes right down to it. Given those circumstances she did exceedingly well as expected by a ruler who has regulated a nation long enough to know the depths of her responsibility.

"Uh, madam Rose?" a soft voice inquired as Rose stepped back inside the palace's vast foyer. Rose turned, so deep in thought she failed to recognise the presence. Once she verified who it was she immediately knew why.

"Luanna" Rose said with a stiff tone that was very much unlike her. The second Scared Sister along Setie who lingered behind gave her a somehow out of place smile. This only made Rose feel even more insecure.

"Please, be at ease" Luanna beseeched softly. Her eyes, stitched closed by threads so light it looked as if she simply kept them closed herself twitched a little. Rose always felt uneasy around this particular Sacred Sister for two reasons. First was that she, being the Black Monster all those years ago was the cause of Luanna's childhood tragedy which cost both her sight as well as her biological family when she razed the unsuspecting town of Neet. Second was that because of that the Second Sacred Sister gained another kind of sight in place of the one she lost. The ability to peer into the souls of others. Nothing could be hidden from one who possessed such vision, believed to be granted by the gods themselves. Upon their first meeting Luanna knew immediately who she was, what she was, and all she had done, but even more disconcerting was her immediate forgiveness of all her transgressions. Rose didn't expect forgiveness from anyone, least of all a victim of her brutal eleven thousand year crusade, but she was granted it with an impossible smile. Rose naturally assumed this a kind of ploy to begin with, after all it seemed inconceivable that her sins could be excused, but after being welcomed each of their few meetings together with a smile so genuine it was all but impossible to disbelieve, she was eventually forced to face the reality. To face the reality that in this world some people are pure enough to wish redemption even among the cruellest of people. In that regard Luanna was a stronger person then Rose could ever be.

"Forgive me for being imprudent, but I don't think I'll ever be able to be at ease around you."

Luanna chuckled heartily at this. "It seems you still haven't changed." Then her expression grew more sombre as Rose felt her supernatural vision pierce her very essence. "I had hoped you would have time to find peace, to atone for your crimes, but it appears that time is not yet.'

"Perhaps I have nothing to really atone for. Perhaps my pure purpose is to simply destroy" Rose responded. But she didn't truly believe that and Luanna knew it.

"I sense the crushing weight of guilt that threatens to squash you. In some ways it saddens me, but in others it gives me hope. For where this is guilt, there is also a willingness to earn salvation."

"I am not worth saving" Rose said, turning away. This subject was one she wished not speak of, most of all to Luanna. Rose felt her gentle touch urged her to face her once more.

"No one is beyond saving if they really seek it. But..." Luanna trailed off, as if unsure how to add voice to her current thoughts, "I don't think you can do that by ridding the world of another villain. A debt of blood cannot be paid with by more blood. There comes a time where you must stop trying to wash away the blood of the innocent through the blood of those not so innocent and cleanse yourself with water instead. Do you understand?"

Rose understood her analogy perfectly. In this case the water was through the deeds of helping others without spilling blood.

"I really wish I could do that Luanna, I really do. But while Wen threatens the world and everything in it, I must kill at least one more person. After that maybe..."

The Second Sacred Sister cut her off softly. "But where does it end? What if someone else takes his place? Will you kill them as well? Do you not see how the cycle is self sustaining?"

"Then what do you suppose I do? Let him destroy all of Endiness in his quest for dominance?"

Luanna sighed deeply. "This is not about saving the world as it is more about you being too scared to toss away the sword you have known only to wield so long. How quickly did you jump at the chance to give yourself an excuse to be a tool of destruction once more? More importantly, in the small gap between the conflict of Melbu Frahma and the new one that has arisen, what did you find yourself doing?"

_Wondering _Rose thought instinctively. _Wondering... And waiting. _She knew the truth of course, knew it from the start. Knew why she was eager to help Zack and their pseudo campaign for peace, knew why she was quick to involve herself in the affairs of others where she never really belonged. _I was looking for a reason to revert to what I know only how to do: To fight. To kill._

While it was true Wen was a threat, there was every chance, if not a higher one that his desire for power would likely lead to his own demise, regardless of anyone else's intervention. Or perhaps someone else would rise up and put a stop to him, where there is conflict there are always new heroes to be forged out of the sparking embers, ready to take on the responsibility of being saviours. Had she and her old comrades not been born of the same cause? Had Dart and his crew not followed the same pattern? What was to stop a new group of warriors standing up to oppression and putting a stop to Wen's quest for supremacy?

As if Luanna could read her every thought she let escape another sigh. "But even knowing this truth you will not deter in your chosen path. You are committed above all else after all. But know that I bring this up for another reason as well: Your companion, Zack. I managed to have a chat with him a few days ago before this war began."

Rose stiffened. This was news to her.

"I swore him to secrecy about our meeting, he was not trying to deceive you. In any event it didn't take someone with my gift to understand he shows rare traits of love, compassion, mercy even in the direst of situation, even if that person were the enemy. Despite the fact he has seen his fair share of vileness in humankind unlike you he has never given up on them, would never abandon the belief that there is good in everyone. To that end he is very pure, yet untainted in a world full of malice and pain. I would ask you Rose that you would not spoil that purity. It is people like him that we need if we can ever hope to save mankind from its own destruction."

Rose was surprised by this and understood immediately that Zack was who she was concerned with all along, not her.

"You think he'll become tainted if he follows me?"

A slight pause. "I think the chance is high, yes."

While kind, she is also very direct and honest. She both admired and hated her for that.

"I wish I could promise I'll keep him pure, but in the end I cannot make any such guarantee. He knows the path ahead of him if he accompanies me, and who am I to stop him?"

"I don't think you'd let him leave even if he wished it. He, or more importantly what he holds is far too valuable to you."

"Perhaps" Rose agreed indifferently. "But I think you are underestimating him Luanna. Not just him but his fortitude. He will not bend nor break as easily as you think he will As you say, he has seen and experienced his fair share of hell on Endiness, yet he is still unwavering in his convictions. He has never made a kill without regret, never not mourned a soul he could have saved. The world around him could literally turn to blood and he would still stand there and scream that it is all still worth saving."

Rose hadn't realised it but a smile had surfaced upon her own lips, a thin smile reminiscent of her would be saviour days eleven thousand years ago. Luanna could only return the gesture with a deep nod.

"Not only that, but he has the ability to inspire change in others it seems. You are living proof of that."

Rose didn't know how to respond. Her initial reaction was to deny the claim, but what good would it do? Luanna was not someone you could deceive, and what she said was true, even Rose was aware of this. Slowly but surely she was becoming more human the more time she spent around him. She didn't know whether to be appalled or joyful at this late change.

Luanna's face turned solemn once more. "Yet despite this I feel the end of the road will end badly for both of you. Bad for him because as noble as his causes are he will eventually reach a juncture when he must face the realisation that his dream is not something one can attain on their own, and bad for you because your fragmented conscience already on the verge of shattering entirely will have to endure that burden and a whole lot more."

Rose fell silent once more. When she felt a reply hot on her lips and was about to verbalise that she would had and would continue to endure the world's weight if it came right down to it, that such things as ones purity and innocence could not be measured against the fate of the planet they all lived on, but before she could begin the meek voice of Setie cut in timidly.

"umm... Lady Luanna..."

The Second Sacred Sister turned and glanced at the smaller, somehow much more frail looking blond woman and gave a quick nod.

"Sorry to have to cut our conversation short Rose, but with recent events there is much I must attend to."

Rose, who had momentarily forgotten the death of Miranda during their heated discussion also nodded, her eyes turning down cast.

"I'm sorry I wasn't able to save her Luanna" Rose said, her voice full of guilt and regret.

"As am I Rose, as am I. She spent most of her life looking out for me, it pains me deeply that I was not able to return the favour when she needed it the most."

Then she was gone, striding towards the higher levels of the palace to attend to whatever needed to be attended too. Rose stood there a while longer, lost in herself, before she eventually retired to her own room, her destination forward usually clear and concise now shrouded in a fog of doubt. She would have to dispel such megrims if she were to have any hope of leading Deningrad to victory, they all would, but for the moment she was once more stuck at a crossroad without a clear direction on which path to take.

* * *

Rose was now alone in her room save for a sleeping Zack who was moved to his bed in their shared sleeping quarters upon her own request. With his life clearly no longer in danger she thought it best the bed he was occupying in the treatment centre best left for someone else who really needed it. The only sign that he was even in the room was the steady rhythm of his chest inhaling and exhaling. Before that Rose met with the Queen and Ramish briefly, to decide on their course of action, but all they could really do for the moment with an army plagued both by fatigue as well as grief was to post the usual watchmen, and try to get the bulk of their army fed and rested. They feared for another attack of course, a follow on during the night from the one they just suffered appeared to be a likely course of action if you were placing yourself in the enemies shoes, like a shark smelling blood in the water they would in all probability assault them when they were at their weakest. But as midnight drew close and no activity from the enemy could be perceived, the possibility of an attack at sunrise grew stronger. In any event they were in no position to counter attack, so all they could do was use the small breathing period to rest and prepare for the next wave.

To the left of her Zack groaned in his sleep before his eyes opened slowly, a dreamy haze filling them for a few moments before they became aware once more. Rose looked on in awe, sure it would take him days to recover from the strain his body had to absorb, but she was surprised once more as he slowly stirred to a sitting position upon his wooden bed.

"Hungry" he mumbled weakly, his eyes darting feebly.

_Of course, his body requires energy _Rose thought.

"Stay still, I'll find you something to eat. In the meantime continue to rest."

"You're not doing so well yourself" Zack responded in a ragged tone. Rose couldn't yet identify if this was merely because he was still drained of energy or still in pain. Likely it was a combination of both.

"I'm in better shape then you are that's for sure. Now be quiet and continue to rest, the quicker you recover the better."

Zack looked ready to say more but in the end remained silent, letting his weariness win out as he moved his head to the side and fell into another deep slumber. Rose took the time to get food and water for the both of them. One of the many palace attendants saw to that, assuring Rose that if she waited in her room food will be brought to her immediately.

With not much else to do for the time being Rose contemplated sleeping herself. Her body was more than willing, but her mind was a different story entirely. Raging with hundreds of thoughts centred around what they could do now and would do in the future Rose found it impossible to block out her overstimulated mind for a time long enough to allow sleep to claim her. Once she finally did feel sleep slowly tug at the corners of her consciousness she was interrupted by a maid who bore two trays of food and water on each hand. Rose gestured the meek woman after a soft knock with a wave of her hand, and the older maid walked in briskly, place the trays upon a rather extravagant small table that sat in the centre of the four beds that marked the visitors quarter, then wished them a good meal before disappearing outside.

Taking a look at the food Rose was rather surprised at how lavish it was. Rose's in particular was a large plate full of various meats and vegetation, some she could identify, some she couldn't, and on a whole it appeared more a buffet then a dining serving. Zacks was, as request, a soup. Rose was unsure if he had the strength or ability at this point to eat a meal as bountiful as her own so went the safe option: A meal that required the least amount of effort to consume. The aroma was pleasing to her own nose and given that Zack woke up almost as soon as the food had appeared, pleasing to his as well.

After making sure she would not have to force feed Zack like a parent would an infant, they both began to eat in earnest, Rose no even bothering to use civilized cutlery like she usually would but simply picked up the meat of the bone and began to tear it off with her mouth like a beast. Zack ate a little slower and was forced to use a spoon, but his rather large bowl of soup which looked to be a mixture of minced meat and vegetables soon disappeared.

"Man that was good!" Zack announced with renewed spirit as he fell back onto the bed. Despite the fact Rose thought she ate as much as one of the giant desert Sandworms who were renowned for just about anything in seemingly unlimited quantities, she managed to only clear half of the assortment of food offered.

_They really do live a regal lifestyle here _Rose thought absently as the dual efforts of a exhaustion and a full stomach persuaded her that sleep was now an all too good an offer to pass up.

But before she could even hope to begin the process of trying to preserve the food for a future meal (no sense in wasting it) then dragging her body onto one of the beds, she was interrupted by a fierce knock at the door. Given the aggressive wraps that crashed against the crystal wall that acted as a door Rose knew this was not anther service maid.

"Enter" she declared, moving to a standing position. What entered her field of vision was Ramish, still in his battle uniform, his face a mask of frightening severity.

"I bear news" he said with a deep voice, although his eyed hinted a weariness that rivalled her own.

Rose nodded, waiting for the captain to continue.

"Sandora wish to come to some kind of agreement, to end this war in a way of diplomacy rather than sword and bow. They are sending a small party speaking directly on their behalf, and we are to send one of our own."

"They want to negotiate?" Rose said with a tone of disbelief.

"Not only that, but negotiate an end."

Rose bit her lip unconvinced. "They will probably demand either our heads or the spirits once more."

Ramish agreed. "So I thought, but the Queen seems to think that given their understanding that we will not surrender said items or people, perhaps they have something different they wish to bargain with."

"So Theresa is willing to negotiate?"

"If it is within their powers to do so and what they are asking is nothing outrageous then yes, she would happily see an end to the struggle."

Rose frowned, feeling unhappy with the proceedings.

"It sounds like a trap."

"It is possible that they are trying to ambush us or catch us off guard but all we will be sending is a small to be our voice, no more than four or five and no one important. What can they really gain by slaughtering so few of our soldiers?"

"I don't rightly know but this is Wen we are dealing with, he may be insane and a megalomaniac, but he is also a mastermind, particularly when it comes to mind games. He is not to be taken lightly."

"Yes, we are aware of that. However have you seen the state of our army of late? We are tired Rose, tired, grieve stricken and de-spirited. We had, and still have every intention of fighting this out until the end, but not if there is a way out that saves both sides bloodshed. Especially now given that we have to face the reality of us not having any real chance at victory. Even you must realise that this is not really an offer of truce but an order, if we ignore this and go back to the skirmish we will be sure to lose. We can no longer take them by surprise and our dwindling numbers are paltry compare to army they have at their disposal. They have been merely playing with us, as a cat would a mouse, and if they decide to turn serious..."

Ramish left the sentence unfinished, but the clear meaning hung between them.

"Are you all cowards?" Rose responded harshly. "Do you have no will to avenge the men and women that fell to them?"

Ramish's gauntlet struck one of the nearby crystalline walls. "Dammit of course we do! We want nothing more than to see them all put to a stake and burned for the hell they have put us through! But what good would charging in senselessly do us? What good does slaughtering the rest of us left do us!? We are at a devastating disadvantage Rose, one we cannot bridge by guts and determination alone. As a long time general of an army, what separates the good leaders from the bad are knowing which battles to fight and which not to. This is clearly one we should avoid if at all possible."

Rose let out an exasperated sigh but ultimately agreed. "You are right, my apologies" Rose said in a low tone. She had uncharacteristically let her emotions cloud her judgment, a side effect she supposed from the mounting exhaustion and grief that threatened to consume her. "Did they give a time for these proceedings?"

"Midday tomorrow."

Rose nodded. "Very well. But I would ask you allow me to be one of the few you send out to parley."

Ramish looked unsure of this decision. "Is that really wise? Perhaps that is what they are hoping. Dangling what they want right in front of them may turn out unwise."

"If we're going to go down this path then we must take certain risks. If they are serious about a truce then they will attempt no such thing."

Ramish fell silent.

"I want to go too" A voice from behind them bellowed. They turned to see Zack, sitting upright and watching them all evenly. He must have been listening in quietly from the start.

"I will have to confer with my Queen, but I shall lobby your proposal and get back to you soon. In the meantime you should rest, there is still a bit of time before the designated negotiations, so use that time to get a clear head."

With that Ramish left the room, his loud, plated footsteps quickly fading into obscurity.

Rose turned to Zack and gave him a sour look.

"Oh, don't look at me like that" he said with a wave of his hand. "After a bit more sleep I'll be nearly back to one hundred percent."

Rose thought him coy, merely trying to hide his injuries. As if to read these thoughts Zack tried to alleviate them.

"I... spoke to my spirit. In a dream I guess you'd call it, although it was unlike one I've ever had before. I know he is the reason I am still here, the reason I am making an impossibly quick recovery. He told me he lent me his powers on a whim, and that he expected to be paid back in full."

Rose notched a eyebrow at this. It was not uncommon for a dragon spirit to converse with their users within their subconscious or in dreams as they sleep, but she had never heard about one asking for any kind of payment for their powers.

"Not only that but he is interested to see where my resolve takes me. That is why he has kept me alive, or so the spirit says anyway."

Rose remained quiet about this. She had no doubt he was telling the truth and none of it was made up or simply a delusion, but while the payment side of things she had no idea about, she did know one thing. That power was unreliable, that he hadn't attained the level of master she had initially assumed but had merely been lucky that the whim of his spirit allowed him that power.

_His resolve eh? _Rose wondered. That also inferred if his spirit ever got bored of its host then Zack would be in a considerable amount of trouble. After all it is in no way an interest to the spirit to keep the host alive, as it doesn't die even if the body in inhabits does.

_More mysteries it appears _she thought absently.

"Regardless the fact that it lent you it's power, no matter what the circumstance is a good stroke of luck indeed. But do not rely on it, if you continue to pull stupid stunts like the ones you have been doing of late I have no doubt you'll find yourself nothing more than a mountain of ash."

"You're telling me" he said with his signature sheepish grin.

They made a little more small talk, seemingly desperate to move away from the problem that plagued both of their hearts, their failure to protect Miranda, and eventually fell into a fatigued-induce sleep. Tomorrow would be the turning point for all of them, but as Rose fell asleep she couldn't shake the uneasy feeling that something just wasn't quite right. And as usual, her intuition was not wrong.


	24. Chapter 24: The End of a Beginning

**Chapter 24: The End of a Beginning **

"I guess now we wait" Zack said with mounting anticipation upon arriving gingerly under the hanging crystal gate that marked the entrance to Deningrad.

"We are a little early judging by the sun overhead" Rose responded, gazing at the circle of light that seemed to almost blend into the sheen of white that plastered across the high snowy peaks.

"Better early than late" Ramish added in his usual gruff tone. "That way if we spot anything askew we can take the initiative."

Only three people made up the negotiation party, Rose, Zack and the general Ramish all waited eagerly for what could still be a possible ambush. To circumvent that not too far behind the gates waited a second party, a few dozen soldiers including the giant Kongol were at the ready to make a charge should it in the end turn out to indeed be a well devised trap, or should negotiations break down into a physical encounter.

While Zack wasn't one hundred percent, that much was clear as Rose observed his awkward stroll and the way he favoured his left side, he was doing a great deal better then she thought he would. Bringing him into what could turn into a fierce battle wasn't something she liked the idea of, but in the end Zack would follow whether she allowed it or not, so it was best he do so where she could keep an eye on him. But all things going well it wouldn't get to that stage, perhaps Sandora really were bent on deciding a truce.

Naturally the actual proceedings of the parley would be left up to Rose and Ramish who were both well versed in the art of word play, more than Zack was in any case, and as the three of them waited on the very edge of town. Only a few words were said between them, everything else was understood without explaining.

"If we sense anything amiss, we kill first then ask questions later, understand?" Rose said in a low tone.

"Agreed" Ramish complied, but also shot her a glance that seemed to say _but mind how fast you jump to such conclusions. _

And so the three waited, not another word muttered among them.

* * *

Despite the promised time of midday Sandora's diplomatic party were by Zack's reckoning over an hour late. Zack guessed this was probably an intentional stunt on their end, but it didn't do good to quell the urge of uneasiness of the whole situation that wasn't unlike the one Rose had voice the at the beginning of the day. Yet they could do nothing else, at least for the moment, but take things as they come and see how this attempt at a ceasefire will ultimately go down. While his own involvement would be minimal, he was ready at a moment's notice to enter the fray should things turn sour.

Sandora's party emerged from the thickets on horseback, roughly a dozen in total all bearing the flags and banners of the Sandorian insignia. Racing towards them the enemy pulled their bronze steeds to a slow trot before they came to a total stop a few feet in front of them. The one leading was a man not covered in thick armour like the other ten or so but in fine silk with a richly adorned circlet atop the elder's bald head. His squinting eyes were both smug and open in their contempt for the three he was now brushing his glance over. As he dismounted, so did the rest of his party, the armoured warriors obvious guards of the courier they sent as Sandora' representative.

_Well if this is indeed all they are sending then we can be sure there will be no serious struggle _Zack thought from the sidelines but he still couldn't be sure. For all she knew this was just another diversion.

"So, you must be the Kinglsayer we have been wanting to kill for far too long" the elder priest looking man started, making no effort to hide his baleful stare that was aimed squarely at Rose.

"And you the messenger" Rose said flippantly. Beyond that no further introductions were going to be made.

"Just know that anything I say is conveyed directly from the newly appointed King himself, Lord Eisenhower, and if any harm should come to me by any of your soldiers it will be treated as if you struck the King himself." He paused a moment, snarling. "Although I suppose given your past that won't worry you in the slightest will it? But know that if you would harm me, this entire city and continent will be crushed under the ever powerful heel of the Sandorian army."

"Just say your piece" Rose said flatly. Zack watched the messenger flare up at what he obviously considered beyond impertinence, but he managed to calm himself down, schooling his features into neutrality once more before pulling out a large piece of rolled up parchment.

"First of all we are announcing our immediate withdrawal of this now pointless struggle" he began to read as if addressing a royal congregation as opposed to two men and one woman. Both Zack and Ramish showed open surprise at this claim, but Rose's features changed not at all.

"Do not assume this our defeat or that you have somehow claimed victory over our great nation. We have achieved what we have come to achieve and as it stands now, any further skirmishes would merely be wasteful and counter-productive. Consider this a kind of extended life line. Like rodents you may scatter like the wind as if sensing an oncoming storm, but rest assured when the time is right all of you involved with the death of our late King will be punished dearly."

The messenger then rolled up the scroll and place it within one of the confines of his robe from whence it came.

"Is that all?" Rose said, her voice like hard steel.

The messenger twitched, visible pulled into a rage once more. "Do you think your pathetic resistance will deter our progress!? Do you think simply because you slew our King that we would be like a chicken without its head, running aimlessly into annihilation?" The emissary snorted with a shake of his large, domed head before he fanned out his hands extravagantly as he looked towards the snowy sky. "We will create an age of peace, an age without war, where all of Endiness will not be separated by the divided interest of many nations but be ruled under the banner of one. A new age ushers around us, and there is not a thing you can do to prevent it."

"Flaunt your feeble ideals of a false utopia elsewhere messenger, you will get no consideration from us. All your nation is, as it has always been along with any who serve it are dictators hell bent on world domination. Nothing at all has changed since the last war." Rose then took a step closer, the distance between them no more than a long stride. "I've met and subsequently killed many of your King's kind, Hytas was far from the first. You know what they all share in common, simple errand boy?"

Rose left the question unanswered for a few moments as the emissary's eyes turned shrill and beady.

"They were all cowards, right down to the very core."

Zack recoiled at this, things turning physical at this stage no more a possibility but more an inevitability.

_Damn it Rose we are supposed to be trying to walk away with a truce here, not provoke another attack! _

Zack expected the messenger to explode, to perhaps even incite an assault, but instead he let loose gusts of vile laughter, his face contorted to one of almost insane fury. When the laughter died, the messenger's next choice of words sealed his fate as his last.

"You may wield considerable power with the nature of your borrowed might, but remember this Kingslayer, many of your former comrades boasted strength that was the same. Do you want to know what _they_ all shared in common? They all died like pathetic insects, begging for their lives as we stomped them out of existence like the parasites they are."

It happened before Zack could even register the split second draw of her blade and the subsequent puncture of the envoy's heart, his face permanently plastered to one of open-eyed surprise. Rose quickly withdrew her blade and kicked the now lifeless corpse to the snowy ground beneath. While it was obvious, at least to Zack that Rose had let her emotions take control of her actions on this occasion none of the expected rage touched her face. Her face was still as cold and emotionless as the snow that fell around them.

The messenger's private guards drew their own weapons and looked to charge in, but the one who was closest to the slain ambassador held up a halting hand. The other soldiers became still at once. the leading guardsman walked over to the bleeding corpse, pushed a hand into his robe and retrieved a scroll that was different to the one he pulled out not a few minutes before. The guard did all this with only one hand but did it with a dexterity that allowed for no wasted time. Rose noticed at once his other hand was clearly severed from the base of the wrist, a mere stump protruding out of clad bracer where a glove or gauntlet would otherwise be. The new rolled up parchment was sealed not only by ink but by a tightly knotted red ribbon as well. The guard silently tossed it in Rose's direction before turning heel and moving towards the rest of his squad. With another hand signal they all began mounting their horses.

"This is my message" Rose said with palpable malice. "Retreat if you will, but tell your King his time is soon coming to an end and it will be his chest next that my blade pierces."

Her only response was the horses hoofs crashing against the soft snow below as they faded into the forestry distance ahead.

"Was that really wise?" Ramish questioned after the enemy was well out of view.

"It doesn't matter, they plan to forgo this war so even if they deny it the victory is still ours." Rose's face took on an expression so malevolent it made both Ramish and Zack flinch at the sight. In front of such a gaze promising future unimaginable sadism what more could be said? Zack and Ramish exchanged a brief glance, both mirroring the same thoughts: Sometimes it was hard to tell which really was the monster, Sandora or Rose herself.

* * *

The near dozen soldiers on horseback that had been part of the emissaries convoy rode deeper into the forest until they came upon a small camp within one of the Evergreen Forest's many clearings. Only a handful of warriors remained, all of them Wingly save for one man. This man, his long blonde hair tied back somewhat by a red bandanna that crossed his forehead regarded them evenly with deep blue eyes. One dismounted, the one with only one working hand, and ordered the rest of his party to continue on ahead to catch up with the rest of their retreating army. Once they left, the camp fell silent once again, the eight Winglies remaining silent in their task of diligence.

"How went the message?" the blonde warrior asked. He was perched on a husk of one of the fallen massive evergreens, his one thick leather boot crossed atop his opposite knee where a long sword dangled within its sheath. His expression was expectant.

The handless soldier removed his helmet and tossed it to the ground, letting out a deep relieved sigh

"The message was received if that is what you mean, but the reception was rather poor. Rose killed the messenger."

The cross-legged warrior gave a quiet chuckle, his broad frame hidden behind the bulk of his scarlet scale armour vibrating softly with every chortle. "It appears she hasn't changed at all. But fear not, the envoy was pig headed and ill-mannered, I'm sure he said something stupid to warrant his death."

"Indeed" the soldier agreed. "He spoke ill of her slain comrades, as if to provoke her. Coupled with the loss of the Sacred Sister she was also close to it appears she most certainly out of temper. But she did not kill him out of insolence alone, it was also to send her own message."

The sitting vagabond smiled. "Which message was this, Wen?"

"That my heart will be the next organ her sword lances."

"Excellent. She really has taken the bait, her usually uncannily sharp perception now dulled by the weight of her emotional turmoil. A slight of hands if you will, perhaps an old trick yes, but when used effectively it can be the very best. We use one hand the flail wildly to garner her attention as the other works its magic from behind while the audience is distracted." He paused a moment, the warriors eyes resting upon Wen's missing hand. "Mind the hand joke" he finished with a wry grin.

"No offense taken" Wen replied although did not share the hardened blonde man's smirk. "Was it really okay for us to simply leave them with the Silver Dragoon Spirit?"

"Let it concern you not comrade. It is regrettable that we did not take it as opportune as it was, but various factors outside out hands made it impossible. None the less they are now down another Dragoon Knight, and when Rose and her crew leave, she will be sure to have it with her. That means that all our remaining stones are still together. Patience and good planning will give us another chance."

"And what if they find a replacement knight? What if they leave the spirit or otherwise try to hide them?" Wen responded in earnest.

"Then all it means is they have another rookie knight we must slay. Of the other issue, Rose will certainly be keeping them with her. Despite the urge to scatter them, she needs them as much as we do. To try and hide them leaves them prone to fall into hands outside Rose's control as per the nature of the spirits, and Rose will hope she is fortunate enough to come across another the spirit deems worthy of its master."

Wen finally relented, placated by his shadowy ally. "I can only assume you have already come up with an idea for the next course of action?"

The blonde warrior let out another generous smile. "You are as perceptive as always my friend. I was thinking that my time behind the scenes has come to an end."

Wen caught on to what the red armoured man was hinting at immediately. "You wish to reveal yourself, to use yourself as bait?"

The red fighter stood, his gaze turning to the snowy canopies high above. "Aye, there can be no better tap laid then using the host I now possess. After all, in their eyes I am still very much Dart Feld, the hero who saved Endiness from oblivion."

Wen watched him for a moment before an engaging smile of his own surfaced his bushy lips. "I can think of a hundred more fitting traps, so I have no doubt you can a thousand. This is less about you wanting the perfect trap but more about you wanting to cause her as much pain as possible."

"You know me too well Wen" the ashen fighter said, his eyes flashing with demonically. "I have quite the score to settle with Rose, and it wouldn't do it justice to not take the route that would cause the most agony. After all I can scarcely wait to see her face when she lays eyes the body of which she will think Dart Feld, and how she will crumble once she realises that the man's spirit it once inhabited is no more."

"I never thought it possible but I believe I really have met a man more sick and twisted then I am... 'Dart.'"

With that final statement shared the forest was filled with the haunting echoes of their laughter.

* * *

_Retreat. They are actually retreating_ Rose couldn't help but eventually acknowledge as she gazed upon the all seeing telescope atop the Crystal Palace as the days began to melt away along with the parting tide of Sandorian soldiers. Rose shared the same worry the entire garrison did, that it was a mere ploy or at the very least they would seek revenge for the slaughter of one of their esteemed emissaries, but as the magnifying device gleaned their forces moving towards Furni before departing with their fleet of ships it proved that an ambush was not their intend and neither was the envoy as esteemed as he thought he was. All in all it pointed to one thing: Deningrad was victorious.

Slowly but surely ripples of triumph began to gush throughout the defending troops before turning into outright currents as strong as any tide. But as strong as the sweeping feeling of success was, Rose stood as unmoved as a giant rock or iceberg, her sights firmly set on the withdrawing enemy through the long device that made it all too easy.

Why am I not surprised you're not joining the celebrations?" A voice lashed out from the plateau's entrance. Rose, almost scowling now turned to Zack with a look that said exactly what she felt. _What was there to celebrate about?_

"We were no more victorious than we were when we escaped Kazas. We were granted this victory, we didn't truly win it, not in the real sense anyway."

Zack's expression now mirrored her own. "You suspect another trap?"

Rose shrugged. "Perhaps not immediately but there is no denying we were played with from the get go. We were the mouse, hopelessly fighting inevitability. We could have been crushed at any time yet weren't, why do you think that?"

Zack gave it some thought. "He wanted us alive?"

Rose nodded in agreement. "I think so. Alive, and on edge. We are still puppets to a show we have yet to understand. At first I thought this mere hubris on Wen and Sandora's part, letting us escape on a mere whim. But now I think different, looking at this scenario and looking back to when we escaped the Black Castle it appears both were calculated movements. We were allowed to survive for a reason."

"Perhaps you're over thinking things? After all perhaps we put up more of a resistance than expected and they decided to cut their losses and take a step back for the time being."

Rose shot Zack a rebuking glance but a quick look into his weary eyes showed her that he didn't really believe that statement at all. It was born from hope more than logic and both of them knew it.

"In any event" Zack pushed on. "We both need to rest. You more than anyone. With a clearer mind better rejuvenated we can plan our next move, it would be foolhardy to do so in the state your in."

"Who said anything about planning -" But Zack cut Rose off before she could really begin.

"I know how your mind works, this whole time you've been simulating an almost endless amount of possibilities and probabilities. Such thoughts need to be considered not by a strained mind but one as clear as possible, you taught me that. We know the enemy is retreating and there is no imminent threat, at least not a likely one, so the best thing we can do now is get some well earned sleep and worry about what to do later."

Rose let out a deep sigh and succumbed to his more practical way of thinking, as much as it pained her to do so.

"Very well. But I do know one thing" Rose said as she began towards the exit of the alcove sitting atop the Royal Chamber. "We cannot keep running. It is time we began to initiate attacks of our own."

"And just how do you suppose we do that?" Zack said a little unsure.

"Divide and conquer" Rose responded with a faint ghastly smile. Then she disappeared, choosing not elaborate any further until the following day.

* * *

Despite Rose's promise to rest immediately she had one final detour to make. As she passed by into the throne room, full of the usual hustle and bustle now that the Queen was had taken back her residency there, she stopped by a nearby pillar and leaned against its icy support with folded arms. The Queen was currently engaging with the other Sacred Sisters, although of what Rose couldn't hear. In the end it mattered little to her, what did was the final business she had with Theresa.

Several minutes elapsed before the Queen finally made eye contact with her. Once she did she took a couple more moments to wrap up whatever it was she was discussing with her remaining daughters then moved them on with a single nod. A majority of the other royal castle folk followed as well, leaving only herself, the Queen and a hand full of private guards. Rose then pushed herself off the support she had been patiently leaning against and moved to the foot of the large steps leading towards the giant throne.

"You have business with me I assume?" the Queen said in a purely business tone.

"A final piece, yes" Rose agreed.

"I think I can guess what this business will pertain to" Theresa said. "The Dragoon Spirit yes?"

Rose nodded. The Queen was many things, but dull certainly wasn't one of them.

"I would request possession of said item" Rose said flatly, moving right to the point.

"Sounds more like a demand than a request" Theresa said curly.

Rose ignored the snide remark and tried to remain as diplomatic as possible.

"It is my belief that the stone would be both more secure as well as useful in hands of our small travelling group."

Queen Theresa eyed Rose evenly. "What if were to believe different?"

_She really isn't going to make this easy _Rose thought regretfully.

"Then I would ask your reasoning behind the claim."

"The idea of allowing all four of Sandora's needed artefacts to be in one easily gettable place is a foolish one. This isn't purely in your best interests but in the interest of all who oppose Sandora. If they get their hands on you they get all the needed Dragoon Spirits."

Rose nodded in understanding. She had already anticipated such a response.

"Perhaps, but with us gone you are in no position to adequately defend it. Should Sandora change their mind and come down upon you with all their forces of human, Winglies and those in-between than you cannot hope to defend the spirit. At least with us we are a moving target. Not only that but the chances of running into someone receptive to the spirit's power are also higher."

"You hope to find another who can wields it's power? You already have one rookie as it is do you think babysitting another even with the off chance of it happening will make it any harder for Sandora to attain?"

"I think it is better than locking it away where it will be of no use at all" Rose said calmly. While Rose supposed she could take it by force if she had to, she wanted to avoid such a resort at all costs. Coercion was the best option here.

_Yet we remain at an impasse. _

Yet there was one final weakness she could expose. One that all rulers shared.

"Sandora _will _come to collect at some point. Leaving it within here will do yourself nor your kingdom any good. You must know as well as I do that if they wished it they could have obliterated Deningrad and everyone in it, it was a mere whim that we were allowed to escape. Would it be truly wise to keep the only thing baiting the enemy here where it will entice a second attack, without the aid of three Dragoon Knights?"

The Queen fell silent but her stare was still icy. Rose took this chance to drive her point home by appealing to the practicality of Theresa that was present within her when nothing else was.

"Letting us and the Dragoon stone, the only things Sandora at this point peruse is the best option for you and your countries stability. You have just endured a gruelling week of war that has by my estimation effectively cut your defences in half. You cannot hope to win another struggle."

Queen Theresa let out a vexed sigh of resignation. "It looks like in the best interests of my country I have no other choice." Rose noticed the Queen's face didn't appear to show as much disappointed as she would have liked to have however. Rose guessed that Theresa had likely already gone over every possible outcome and had already come to terms with conceding the spirit. Theresa was just making it difficult for the sake of it.

_Bitter to the end _Rose thought morosely.

"I pray that your departure will be your last, but I not foolish enough to assume such an end will eventuate. Instead I will task you with a duty far more fitting to one as barbaric as yourself." The Queen's stern expression turned to one of bloodlust. "Destroy Wen and anyone under him. Make him pay of all he has done to us with the penalty blood."

She then moved her hand into one of the pockets within her regal white and green dress. In her palm now shone the masterless White-Silver Dragoon Spirit. She held it out elegantly, to which Rose ascended the stairs and accepted it without a word. Upon receiving it Rose gave a single nod to which the Queen returned solemnly. Nothing more needed to be said between the two. Rose accepted the spirit along with the burden it carried, no longer clouded by only Shirley who owned it previous but Miranda as well, both who she was unable to save from their unfortunate fates.

* * *

For the first time in what felt like an age Rose, Zack and Kongol were able to enjoy a rest not forced upon them purely by exhaustion. The war no longer an imminent threat meant they could sleep without fear of invasion, and it did all three of them a world of good, even if Rose's sleep was troubled as it always was.

By around midday the following day Zack appeared to make what was a full recovery. His burns caused from his attempt to blow the Sandorian camps to embers were all but gone, no more than faint red marks, and the early injury he sustained at the hand (or sword rather) of his old mentor was nothing more than an old scar, so old in fact you would think it was years old instead of weeks. The same went for any other injuries he had received during his journey.

"I feel better than I have since I met you to be frank" Zack said, surprised with his own recovery. He tested each limb with a variety of stretches and motor exercises. "If it weren't for being in a guest room full of crystal I'd try practicing with my spear to be sure."

"You got lucky, but that doesn't mean you can -"

"Go throwing myself into danger recklessly, I know" Zack finished with a jovial grin. Rose could only shake her head.

"You still haven't learned" she muttered, turning back to her pack of rather diminished supplies that she knelt over, giving one final examination. Some food, some water and very little medical utensils were all they had left.

_I've travelled with worse _she supposed, but the idea of travelling into the freezing wilderness of Mille Seseau with this amount of meagre supplies was a worrying one. _Can't help that all the town's supplies are being funnelled into the decimated army until they can trade with other cities._

A hard knock resounded from the guest room door put a halt to Rose's worrisome thoughts.

"Enter" she said, standing up. Ramish entered, a large tied, linen sack in one arm, a smile plastered across his face.

"Comrades" he greeted happily, a contrasting change to his usual solemn demeanour.

"Clearly being the captain of an army no longer in conflict has done you as well as it has done us" Zack declared with a matching smile. They closed the distance and clasped hands in a gesture of good will. Kongol only watched from the other end of the room with expressionless eyes.

"I heard that you will be leaving us very soon and I couldn't help but say my own goodbyes to the heroes who helped stave off an impossible army" the general said with a laugh.

Zack rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed. "You give me at least too much credit, I spent most of the battle either here or bed ridden."

"Your counter attack was commendable as well as admirable. You show a fierce spirit, perhaps you will one day find yourself a leader, you are fit for the job I think after a few years of experience."

The talk between Zack and Ramish continued for a time before Rose cut the chatter short.

"It's nice that you came to say your farewell - and it is appreciated - but I can't help but notice you are carrying a bag of unidentifiable goods and can only assume saying goodbye isn't the only reason you are here."

"Sharp as always and right to the point. Many have compared you to that of a pointed blade or dagger - after seeing you in person and in battle I can safely say it is an apt comparison. But yes I also come bearing gifts as well as information that I hope will make your journey a little easier."

Rose nodded but said nothing, more interested in the information than the souvenirs.

"While you've made it well known your intention to leave, we know not where you plan to leave to."

Rose glanced at both Zack and Kongol. "I have a few ideas but have yet to confer with the other two of my team for confirmation. Yet even so once we do know it would be in both of our best interests if we didn't reveal our itinerary to you."

"I thought as such" Ramish said, not at all insulted. "Yet I think it is safe to assume you'll be leaving our continent, after all there is nothing else to fight for here. To that end we have received news that Furni is not under direct occupation any longer."

Rose frowned at the word 'direct.'

"Yet they are still observing" Rose deducted.

"Yes" the captain agreed. "They offered us the port town in exchange for an open trade route between us and the other kingdoms, although as you can guess Sandora is the centre hub. One would assume that through that they will be keeping an eye on our side of the world."

"Trade?" Rose said, a little bemused.

"Not surprising really" Zack chimed in after a lengthy silence. "They control not one region but three, they probably don't have the resources on their own to sustain all of them even if they own the supplies of each province."

"The boy is right, we are after all one of the focal trade boons for basic supplies from clothing fabrics to building materials. To lose us as a trading partner would be cutting off one's nose despite their face" the captain agreed.

"I fear this goes beyond simple trade, but none the less this is welcome news" Rose said, her thoughts turning inwards.

A silence fell between them. Ramish broke is by dropping the sack of unknown items at Rose's feet.

"This isn't much but it is all we can spare for the time being. As you know the war has taken its toll on our city and until we can restock what we have spent we must ration carefully. In the bag you'll find the thickest cloaks we can offer, thicker than the ones given to you previous as well as some food, water and few medical supplies. I wish you we could send you off with more but..."

"What you have given us is generous enough" Rose assured as the good captain began to trail off.

Ramish nodded. "Then all that is left is to bid you all farewell. It was a pleasure to fight by your side Rose." He glanced towards the almost statue like giant. "Him as well, although truth be told he is a frightening ally." Kongol turned his head towards the captain at this and gave a solemn nod before turning back towards the crystal walls. The movement was very mechanical.

"Take care of everything" Rose responded, extending her hand in a rare gesture of approval. Ramish took it and gave it a brief shake.

"I wish you all for the best and pray we can meet again someday" the veteran finished with another smile, although this one was forlorn. He knew as well as any of them that the chances of one of them let alone all four meeting again would be close to nil.

"Hopefully next time for a social call eh?" Zack said in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Indeed, I hope you will have good news to tell us."

With not much else to say Ramish bowed lightly before exiting the room, none of them able to shake the feeling it would be the last time they would all meet together.

* * *

"You have a plan of some kind?" Zack asked as Ramish disappeared out of the quest room.

"Perhaps" Rose said almost noncommittally as she took a seat on the end of one of the beds. "I know we cannot simply continue to run in hopes to elude our pursuers while they continue to grow stronger."

"Aye" Zack agreed. "But a frontal assault will not work either."

"No. Attempting to storm Kazas again would be foolhardy. So we must go with the next logical solution."

Zack remained silent a moment. "I have a strange feeling what you are about to propose is in no way logical.."

Rose fixed him a stern look, unhappy that he wasn't seemingly taking this seriously enough.

"We cannot attack the centre of the Imperial hub because it is too well guarded from all sides, to well fortified. Why do you think it wasn't too concerned with occupying Mille Seseau itself? The only access point to the peninsula of Sandora is either through northern Serdio, once ruled by Bales but now under direct Sandorian occupation, and Tiberoa from the west which has also fallen into Sandora's hands. With the only other route by water which is closely watched as well, even all the way from here, how do you expect we can get anywhere near the capital?"

"Sneak?"Zack said, but even he knew this was a foolish answer. "No, we can't hope to slip into province now so highly alerted" he quickly amended.

"Nor would we do anything even if we could slip in, we would only result in attaining the same outcome of our previous attempt."

"Then what are you inferring?" Zack almost shouted in exasperation. "In case you haven't realised I'm not as war or conquest savvy as you are."

"The problem is not only the almost impenetrable city itself but its far extending reach. With virtually two continents under their control they have created an oppression so immense no one would dare to struggle. So for now we can only hope to attack their supply lines, their peripheries, their support. Namely one of the regions they are in command of and slowly turn the tide and build an opposing army of our own"

"You mean Basil or Fletz?" Zack inquired, his excitement practically dripping with each word. "We're going to liberate one of the controlled major cities!?"

Rose nodded. "We'll try in any event."

Zack became even more energetic. "Yes of course! It's time we hit them where it hurt eh? eh?"

Rose's features turned into a scowl once more. "I think you have your head in a dream still. Liberating is not as easy or in actually 'liberating' as it may seem. Even if many may opposed Sandora in secret, those not sworn fealty are too scared to turn active out of fear of repercussions. I have no doubt any that have in the past, and I'm sure there have been after all there are never a shortage of rebelling fools just after a city has been taken over, have been made a public example of in a cruel punishment meant purely to incite fear into any who would dare to try."

Zack shot her a questioning look. "How can you know this?"

"It's rudimentary Zack, and it's exactly what I would do were I in charge of Sandora. To quell the mobbing masses from breaking out into constant infighting you must display a brutality so barbaric that one has no choice but to submit unless not only he or she suffers but likely the family and friends as well regardless of their involvement or lack of. Fear is the most potent weapon of all."

Rose's eyes clouded over turning pensive. "I have experienced these tactics first hand, and seen them more times than I can remember let alone count. We Humans learned a thing or two about domestic subjugation from the Winglies who did the very same to us."

Kongol snorted from his corner. "Humans even worse. Humans far surpassed Winglies."

Rose nodded in agreement. "The point is we cannot simply waltz in and expect to be met with an army of supporters. It'll require us to do something pivotal to dispel the fear these citizens are likely subjected to daily. There is a high chance we will have to kill many of the local citizens, as many will be turncoats, hoping for either rewards or to somehow gain favour for bringing us our wanted heads. This will be no easy task. Just bear that in mind."

Zack's demeanour turned the polar opposite what it was a few seconds before. Looking almost stricken, Zack's hope of grandeur dimmed to a faint spark.

_To that end he is very pure, yet untainted in a world full of malice and pain. I would ask you Rose that you would not spoil that purity._ Luanna's plea invited itself into her mind once more, lodged in a deep recess like a tune you could not stop humming or hearing.

_It is best he knows the reality now and know what to expect rather than later where it might get him killed _Rose rationalised, but it didn't do much to soften the blow that stuck her conscience when Zack realised he would likely not be doing as much saving or liberating as he would killing.

"Which city will we strike first? And how?" His voice was grave, listless even. Rose again found herself thinking he was not made out of this, for any of this, that in time his exposure to the real nature of people would warp him as much as it had her... but it would not stop her from pushing him down that road. What had begun had begun and there was nothing more to it then to see it out till the end, as tragic as that end was likely to be.

"Fletz" Rose responded. "I think due to how far away it is from both Serdio as well as Sandora will mean it will be difficult for them to send support once they realise we are attempting to rid their control. Plus, if we succeed it will be a good base of operation to use to slowly creep in ever closer to Basil before confronting Sandora directly."

"The plan?"

"We'll either sneak or commandeer one of the ships at Furni and attempt to gain entry into either Donau or Fletz itself."

Now it was Zack's turn to do the frowning. "Sounds incredibly flimsy, even for my tastes."

"I'll work out the particulars as we arrive at Furani and I can assess the situation properly. In the meantime this is a guideline of sorts. I've ran through many possibilities and this is the only one where if successful I can see it both weakening them and strengthening us. We cannot simply continue to run and without some man power of our own to wield we will never be a match."

Zack sighed but gave his consent none the less. "Fine. When do we leave?"

It was then that the giant Giganto shifted off the crystal and began to move towards the exit of the room, as if it were some sort of signal. To him it any case it was, a signal to put behind this period of brief respite and move onto the next battle that awaited.

"What... Now?" Zack said with a stagger.

"Now" Rose agreed, finalizing the preparations and stocking the supplies Ramish was kind enough to gift them. She then threw the largest of the silk and wool packs to Kongol, who caught it without a word and strapped it around his massive back. Rose then threw a smaller one to Zack who did likewise. "The time for running is done. It is now time for us to make a stand, or at least die doing so. to him we may be insects, but even insects can be dangerous if provoked and with large enough numbers. We will make him learn that lesson well."

No more words were spoken. What was needed to be said was said, and what needed to be done now lay in front of them. Facing their objective they raced towards it with renewed hope and vigour.


	25. Chapter 25: The Black Rose

**Chapter 25: The Black Rose**

Mercifully their second journey of travelling across the Evergreen Forest's dense thickets proved a lot more easier than the trio's first. Partially that had to do with the fact both their thicker clothing and the natural adaption to the cold their body's had began during their stay, but mainly it was to do with the fact that nature in all its capricious wisdom chose not to thrash them with snowstorms and blizzards this time around but instead with light snowfall as faint rays of sunlight that escaped through the thick clouds overhead. A slight but welcome rise in temperature came with the sun as well, what was once a bed of soft snow underneath that nearly sunk to the knee had thawed to one that only consumed the ankle. It was still hard to trek, especially since the density of the soft snow that melt like walking in quicksand never remained the same constant; sometimes you sunk to your calves, others it was so scarce you could see the greenery underneath. None the less the weather was favourable for travelling, and Rose planned to take full advantage of it while they could. No telling when it might take a dangerous turn.

"I've grown to quite like this setting" Zack said, starting one of his many rambling he was so prone to do during their longer expeditions. Rose, who was usually against such useless blabber found herself indulging in it at almost every opportunity. Not much, as was her nature her responses were usually only one or two words, but they were one or two words more than usual. As the days rolled by with nary of change in scenery (even the reclusive wildlife likely turned more withdrawn thanks to both the invading army and Zack's forced assault were few and far between) Rose's patience which was always seemingly infinite had dwindled to the tides of unescapable boredom. No dangerous creatures, soldiers or bandits, no perilous whether threatening to freeze them just a sheen of white snow and towering trees that looked identical no matter how far into the forest they trudged.

Rose shrugged in response. "One scenery is as good as any other really."

"What about you big fella?" Zack said, shooting a question towards Kongol. The giant only snorted curtly in response. Zack didn't think it possible but he had met someone less inclined towards conversation then even Rose. When not discussing something relating directly to their next objective or next battle you could mistake him for almost a mute.

Sighing, Zack attacked the partner a slightly more receptive to chatter, even if only a little.

"We've been walking for nearly a week now, how much longer you reckon we have till we clear the forest? We could have at least requested horses."

"A day or two longer perhaps? Maybe more I can't rightly say, even with the map Ramish provided for us detailing the easier passages towards Furnai. Horses wouldn't do us good either, not in the long run. With the thick snow and winding nature of the forest along with the many hidden outcroppings we could only move at a light trot and without the enough food and water to cater for three they'd fall to exhaustion within a two days if the animals didn't trip and break a leg."

"It just seems that when not fighting off hordes of enemies all we do is travel."

"You are a good ten thousand years too young to be complaining about such trivialities" Rose responded dryly. "If things stretch out longer then I hope, and there is always a good chance it will assuming we continue to evade death and capture, then we have much travelling in front of us to do as well."

Before their conversation could go any further the three of them were confronted by a kind of barricaded wall in the form of not the usual Evergreens that flourished into magnificent greenery only a meter or two from the base but by large drunk that spanned high into the air before tendrils both thick and thin perforated out from the main body giving life to a different kind of green coating. Elms or Oak trees perhaps at a guess, as many possible as only a few or few dozen, the way the roots and stems intertwined to create a vine like fence made it impossible to tell. It was eerily natural, and eerily obvious that it was also a form of protection.

The three stopped in front of the covered clearing that looked to span only a few yards in each direction, like the grove was somehow isolated from the rest of the forest by the lining trees that protected the parameter in a skewed kind of squared arc.

"All it's really missing is a keep out sign" Zack said in amazement. A dark shadow from within made it hard to peer into, only scant sunlight making its way through the overhead bushy leaves that were so laden it was as if it could collapse on itself and come crashing down.

Rose pondered this odd mark of nature in silence.

"Do we go in and take a look? It looks like a tight fit, but there are plenty of gaps to weave into." He then glanced at Kongol doubtfully, his enormous size meant he'd have to hack his way through.

"It's unrelated to our destination however..." Rose looked at and to the west, where the sounds of thunder reverberating audible in the distance. "It is getting towards sunset and the oncoming storm worries me a little."

"It would provide great cover" Zack agreed and took this as his cue to push between the vine like stems and move into the clearing.

"Wait!" Rose urged. "It could be a nest for a group of predatory animal like wolves, or worse yet a den for monsters, don't go sauntering in there like a fool."

Zack shrugged indifferently. "I can't hear anything."

Rose moved up and pushed him aside. "Stay here until I give the signal. The last thing we need is you getting injured by stray animals or monsters."

Not giving Zack time to respond she moved through the many layers of bark vines. The barrier was surprisingly thick and took some effort to wade through, but eventually the she reached where the clump of trees ceased and a wide span of openness took over. Not exposing herself entirely Rose moved as close as her cover would allow and sharpened her senses. She could see, hear, smell or hear nothing. After a few minutes elapsed she moved out of the cover of the trees ever so slowly.

Nothing.

Another scan offered her nothing different. Eventually deeming the grove safe she was ready to move back out to Zack and Kongol and give them the okay, but before she could even turn she heard rustling from the trees behind her. Right behind her.

_Shit!_

She didn't need to think, her body, urged by honed reflexes so sharp it was secondary in nature took a step forward, her form tightening as her right hand for her sword. In the split second it took for her to notice the sound her sword was already cleaving behind her in the direction of the sound.

She heard before she saw the thud as she identified Zack flat on his back, his eyes wide in shock.

"Woah!" he cried in dismay, the blade curving past what had not a second earlier been his neck.

Rose's expression turned to one of shock before one of anger.

"Are you a total fool!? I told you to stay put! Yet not only do you follow me, you follow me from behind! I would have taken your head off had you been a fraction slower!"

She had of course realised in the end it was Zack, that realisation being the only thing that gave her unconscious actions enough slow for Zack to avoid the slash, if only narrowly. But he took a big risk still by flanking her, once her body decided to move it was impossible for her to stop it in the space it took for her blade to find her target, whether it be friend or foe.

Sheathing her blade Rose extended a hand to help up a prone Zack who was still resting on his back, his face the look of one still processing how close he was to losing his head. Taking it with a absent minded kind of haziness, Zack used Rose's leverage to manoeuvre back to his feet.

"Spot anything of interest inside?" Zack asked, his face turning focused once more. Rose shook her head.

"Nothing that I can spot. Just a large circular grove with a rose patch in the middle. it's spacious enough even with the garden bed to set up a camp and camp fire, and the thick branches overhead provide encouraging cover as you surmised should a storm pass over."

Zack stepped forward and pushed into the grove ahead of her. Rose followed, entering a jagged kind of ring untouched by trees or other vegetation outside a small flower field made up primarily of roses. The clearing was as large as perhaps a small pavilion or church and was one of the few areas the trio had encountered so far that allowed the generous grow of substantial meadow like greenery from below. The giant branches that arced on top of the clearing, full of thick leaves and branches were like a ceiling indeed, prevented a good amount of snow from covering the earth beneath and killing all but the most stubborn of plant life forms.

What took Zack's attention and then her own as Zack drew her towards it was the small flower field. Roses dominated the field but lily's, orchids, even a daisy or two were spotted among others, which was quite the sight to see considering such flowers usually did not bloom in such harsh cold climates. Yet there was one flower in particular that caught both Rose and Zack's interest. Within the centre of the field was what appeared to be a very dark, almost black rose. Dark, curling petals embraced the inner filaments and sigma like a protective barrier, the head of the flower leaning slightly to one side atop a winding stem that appeared to have trouble holding high the weight of the top. The stem appeared to bare no thorns either, just a light green thin stalk that rose as high as perhaps a humans forearm.

"Am I actually looking at a Black Rose here? Such things are prominent in folk tales and legends, usually as omens, but never believed to actually exist."

Rose said nothing but moved to the edge of the flower bed and examined it closely.

"It's not quite black" Rose said after a few moments. "But a very deep red or maroon. Likely a rare mutation to create such a dark huge in the petals. In any event it looks more darker than it is due to the contrasting whites flecks of snow resting atop the flower. None the less this is a unusual almost peculiar occurrence, I have never seen a rose quite like this one."

Zack agreed. "If you believe folklore it is a sign of bad things to come. A warning of sorts if you will."

Rose appeared genuinely surprised at this, her face in one of her uncommon moments mirroring what she was feeling inside. "You are superstitious?"

Zack shrugged. "Not as much as some, but when you are presented with an eerie sign like this one it is rather hard to disregard."

Rose again turned her gaze upon the anomaly. While she was far from superstitious herself, had lived a life far too long to believe in such fallacies, she couldn't help but fear that bad things indeed waited them in the not so distant future. She had this feeling for a while now, had of course not put voice to this, but looking at this dark rose appeared ashen and burned, that feeling assaulted her tenfold.

"Let us set up camp." Her voice was more raspy then she would have liked, even Zack noticed it after giving her a sidelong questioning glance. "I'll go and get Kongol."

Disappearing into shrubbery once more Rose collected giant who was carrying the bulk of their camping supplies upon his broad back. Needless to say he could not fit through the gaps offered between the intersecting branched, so he was forced to cut his own path using his gargantuan axe. Also needless to say Kongol made quick work of it.

* * *

The chance to use some much needed cover turned out to be a wise one. The three scrambled to make camp preparations, a large fortified tent made out of various thick hides supported by iron rods the priority as they had little light left to work with and by the time they attempted to spark a small camp fire, rain and heavy winds greeted them in earnest. The trees provided some cover, generous really when you considered how open they would otherwise be, but rain still managed to lash them as well as squalls that dropped the temperature far below sub-zero levels. Thunder and lightning cracked around them as if a giant that even dwarfed Kongol was mashing a giant hammer. By this stage even a campfire was impossible to keep alight, all they could do was huddle amongst each other, draped in as much clothing and blankets they had on them.

Something loud, almost like a shriek pierced the thunderous atmosphere. That was a feat in and of itself considering the thunderclaps were damn near deafening. The cry didn't sound human or even animalistic, it sounded demonic.

Zack craned his face close to Rose so he wouldn't have to compete with the thrashing of the weather. "What in the hell is that!?"

Rose lowered her eyes and opened her senses. If she was a dog her ears would be curled back and her maw a snarl. She sensed danger, supernatural danger, and in weather like this that would freeze them if they ventured into it with their meagre clothes alone that was problematic to say the least.

Another ear-piercing screech.

Had Amika been present she would have thought it terrifyingly reminiscent of the fiends she and Earl had faced during that frightening night in the bowels of Eldrilen's Belt.

Kongol, who was only just able to squish into the otherwise accommodating tent stiffened, his white eyes darting from side to side. If Zack hadn't known him for the unafraid and ferocious warrior he was he would easily mistake such gestures for fear.

"What is it Kongol!?" Rose question, apparently the gestures didn't go unnoticed by her either. Thunder still crashed in the background resulting in the three resting travellers having to yell to compete with it.

Kongol looked around another time before another somehow phantasmal cry was unleashed. More followed, as if it were a warped, bone chilling imitation of a pack of wolves howling.

"Kongol not like. Not human or beast."

The deep almost trembling quality of the Giganto's voice meant he didn't have to yell, but the way he spoke like a small child would afraid of a large animal made Zack wish he did. If whatever these things are have even Kongol spooked, then they were all in some pretty deep shit.

"No more talking! We lay low, covered and still! If we're lucky they will pass us in peace!"

Another thunderclap followed by more shrieks. The two of them did as ordered, they covered themselves while laying flat, remaining still as they possible could.

The inhuman screams of the unknowns that sounded like cries of torment along with the violent storm continued to batter them for the rest of what would be a very long night.

* * *

Sunrise came and with it the end of the storm. The winds didn't completely vanish, but more importantly whatever it was that made those horrible sounds did. They hadn't noticed nor attacked their camp, although judging by how close the shrills were they must have been near, but perhaps just as importantly what they did do was deprive them of a good night of sleep and rest. Dangerous looking dark clouds still lingered, threatening to turn chaotic stopped them from using any more of the morning to catch up on much needed energy.

"We can rest once in Furni which shouldn't be more than a good day or two's walk" Rose said as they packed up the tent. Nothing was mentioned about the creatures of the night. It was as if to do so would summon them once more.

With preparations finished they were ready to leave the grove. It was then that Zack noticed something odd about the flower bed.

"Look" Zack said, catching Rose's attention. Rose set her gaze where Zack pointed and noticed the field had been decimated by the rampant winds in the heavy storm. Every flower had either been flattened or outright blown away. All but one: The Black Rose, which stood utterly untouched by the tempest that had wrecked everything else, in the exact same condition as the day before.

They both stared at the flower in silence for a time, before Zack broke it with his usual ridiculousness. Only in this case it really wasn't.

"Still don't believe this is an ill-omen now?" He said with a laugh, although his laugh lacked any real humour. Behind it lied the distinct sound of apprehension.

"Let us take leave. We have little time to waste." With that, Rose turned heel and helped Kongol with the last of the mornings preparations before exiting the grove with obvious eagerness. Zack could hardly blame her, he would be all too happy to see this grove, this flower and whatever fiends the area attracted (the idea that the monsters and the Black Rose weren't exclusive to one another occurred to both of them) well and truly behind them.

* * *

Rose's guesstimate appeared accurate as it so often was. Border-lining on another two days, the daylight began its decline towards high noon the trio reached the entrance of Furni. Rose and Kongol, who had both visited on previous occasions made no point of commenting on a town they had both already seen, but to Zack's wondrous eyes who expected nothing but a mere port town, it was truly a sight to behold.

"This is Furni!?" he asked stupidly. Rose and Kongol ignored him, their gaze intently set on the settlement that wasn't so much a port town but a town based around an actual port itself.

"It isn't in as bad shape as I imagined, but the scent of blood can still be smelled even from the entrance" Rose said.

Kongol only grunted in response. Unless there was fighting to still be done, he was not particularly interested it seemed. Given Ramish's earlier breakdown of the situation, that Sandora were only really watching from afar and had no intention of directly interfering, the chances were minimal that they would have to resort to any violence. Yet that didn't mean zero, so they would have to be on guard all the same.

Zack however was still staring at the town that was literally built from the shoreline and extended into the endless sea. The idea that people could actually live _on _the water and not merely around it was a foreign concept to him.

"We are merely passerby's, nothing more understand? Do not do anything to stand out" Rose ordered as she moved towards a descending road that would soon give way to the crystal blue water of the Illisia Bay. Zack glanced at Kongol and wondered how such a feat would be possible.

Furni was within the almost circular lagoon or river mouth was made up of lands from both the Death Frontier as well as Tiberoa that encompassed a few broken islands in-between. Sunset Island covered the southern part of the winding peninsula while a northern stretch, cut off from the Sunset Island was once called Prison Island, home to an jailed water Dragon along with many convicts that were incarcerated before, cut off from all civilization. Many underground caverns that worked as labyrinths lied under sea level, some which connected Furni and the lost islands to Fueno in Tiberoa, and while Rose had considered using this as a stealthy method of entry, the ever whimsical tides created an a constant risk of being flooded out, not to mention it was a maze even unknown to her. Getting lost without finding a way out was just as likely as getting washed out in a tidal current.

Furni itself was a town of evenly rowed buildings separated by rather large strip of ocean Zack observed as he began to wonder into it. Naturally the city wasn't large after all it could only make use of the shallow regions of the sea, perhaps spanning as far as fifty or a hundred or so meters from the shoreline, but what they couldn't achieve in length they made up in with density, giving it a true metropolis feel to a blueprint that by all rights shouldn't really exist. This was achieved through a truly unorthodox style he wouldn't have believed if it hadn't been seen.

_I thought I'd seen it all with the already strange places I've already visited _Zack reflected. But each settlement still managed to awe him in different ways. He didn't realise how sheltered, how ignorant he was before he started this journey until now.

The houses and buildings were dome like constructed, very open yet visible dual or even thrice layered. Yet most of the arched homes had no floor on the bottom level, the sea was their base as many extended to higher levels through stairs. The materials used themselves appeared thin almost to the point of frail, a mixture of plaster and clay moulds perhaps Zack would have to guess by looking (they all shared a beige theme in colour) but given the savage weather they had to deal with, even this far removed from the brutal centre, Zack thought that appearance was deceptive. Windows were mere oval gaps in the foundations replacing the orthodox use of panes and glass which in some cases extended to the ceiling where cover were replaced by open roofs (Zack also wondered if they could be covered to fight any rain). Other significant points of interest laid in the decorations of many of the houses, wooden signs and illustrations and marking not quite known to him were plentiful along with cultivated flora like flowers and vines and even small trees, as if to give a more natural vibe to the ocean city.

"Yet I see no obvious crossings to traverse this place" Zack said. They moved down a set of stone stairs, a small abode to their rear, yet only another small flight of stairs adorned by lush greenery within the open spaces provided on each side led to the water below that had no obvious signs of further travel. Unless they were supposed to swim that was, which given the scenery might be scarily possible.

"This is a place that holds a strong connection to the Water Goddess Illisa, which this ocean is named after" Rose began. "As such they consider bridges and the likes which grant passage over the water and not actually through it almost sacrilegious."

"So we have to swim after all!?" Zack cried in dismay.

Rose shook her head.

"By small canoes. You must travel atop the water, not over it, to gain the goddesses' favour. Or so they believe anyway, I would much prefer conventional travel myself."

"We need all the gods favour we can get" Kongol responded on a topic that was very un-Kongol like to do so.

_Perhaps he takes things like this seriously? _Zack wondered a little bemused.

"None the less the town appears strangely unharmed, at least structurally anyway" Zack said thoughtfully. "If they were wanting to destroy any escape methods, then wouldn't razing this town be ideal? It's like they went out of their way to leave it intact."

"Indeed' Rose agreed, glancing overhead. Gulls and vultures circled over head, dipping down hungrily from time to time. "Although it would seem the denizens were not spared such a fortunate fate. Again be on guard, this soon after being attack will leave many of the remaining villagers both suspicious and volatile."

As if her words summoned such a scenario, the river mouth leading deeper into the town that had so far been utterly undisturbed began to ripple with activity. The long yet somehow light to the point of fragile looking wooden boat-canoes which could hold no more than three smaller sized people began to wade towards them, three in total. The first two carried only two people, large, broader persons by the look, the last one carrying an extra. They paddled their way towards the entrance platform they all stood on, disembarked and moved to face them. By the look of the overtly hostile expressions plastered upon their ashen faces, Zack didn't think this was any kind of welcoming committee.

_Local militia by the look _Zack thought as he judged their scant protection in the form of thin cloth and frayed leather. Their weapons, clubs, knives and makeshift spears were no better.

_No wonder they were so easily crushed by Sandora _Zack thought with pity.

Seven in total marched towards them. Zack took a step forward, fetching Rose a pleading look. "I'd like this to not have to end in bloodshed. I'll handle this."

It was after all familiar territory. Even Fletz had its own local militia to deal with the backstreet wrong-doings the knights of Basil were too occupied to handle. To that end Zack had a lot of experience with such groups, after all where better to start when you're determined to right the wrongs of the world then your very own city streets?

One man, more a bear if you took into account his large almost seven foot size and hairy face wore some semblance of real chain armour and was armed with a proper weapon: A broad sword. Zack couldn't be sure but he thought if any of them had to be the leader, assuming they had one, it was him.

"And you three are?" the large male spoke, his tone unpleasant to say the least. Yet it was not Zack that his eyes rested upon but the man-mountain Kongol.

_And who could blame him? He really is a sight to behold _Zack agreed, even if it did make him feel insignificant by comparison.

"Just passing travellers who want only a short stay and no trouble."

Zack cast his glanced back to his two companions, looking for affirmation. As usual Kongol was a stone statue but Rose have a single nod, her eyes showing the slightest surprise at this latest display of rather refined diplomacy.

"Your business?" The man pressed.

"Passage across the sea."

"Why?"

Zack paused a moment. "Merchants. We offer our supplies to those in need across the world. Now that the threat of invasion is over we thought it wise to move onwards."

As Zack and Rose spoke about on their way Furni it would be best from now on, at least until they reached Basil to avoid using their real names. Rose and Kongol in particular held great weight, but their aim was to remain as inconspicuous as possible, and word to mouth spread fast. They could ill afford to create a ruckus with every town their encounter on their way towards their destination.

"Do you just?" The apparent leader of the militia said distrustfully.

"We have no reason to lie. I understand your town has come under attack recently. You have my condolence, and I understand your suspicion all too well. But we are not with Sandora, nor do we wish you harm. We only wish to go about our business peacefully, as you would yours."

"Be that as it may our town is in no condition to house or ferry strangers in its current state. You will have to find another way."

Rose took a step forward, perhaps to solve the problem her own way as she always did, but Zack held out a halting hand. He could still get through to them. These were not malicious men or enemy warriors but scared townsfolk trying to recover from a surprise invasion.

"Please, we only wish to help those in need, your town included. It may be hard, but trust us when we say we are on the same team here."

"There is nothing to offer. Our boats are either in ruin or under Sandorian control, our sailors nothing but stranded drunkards. Three suspicious people like yourselves would only stir the city into trouble, and we've had enough trouble in recent times." His face, or what you could see of it behind his bushy dark beard and brow turned melancholy.

Without any words to respond to the deep meaning behind the explanation, Rose pushed past Zack and faced them. She then removed a piece of parchment from one of her satchels, unravelled it and showed it to the militia.

The leaders expression turned to one of surprise and then reverence upon completion. "This is..."

"From the Queen herself" Rose said.

This was the first time Zack had seen or heard of such a scroll himself. He couldn't scry the contents but could guess them well enough.

"Then we have no choice" the man relented with a sigh. "If her Highness decrees your actions, then we can only obey as all good citizens should. You have my apologies for holding you up."

He returned the paper, which Rose rolled up and place back where she had drawn it from.

"What you seek however will still not be easy to attain, but we shall try. In the mean time we recommend you stop by the tavern and rent yourself a room. They aren't the greatest you'll ever find, but a bed and warm blankets is what you'll get and that should be enough for travelling merchants such as yourselves."

Rose nodded. "That is all we will need."

All previous doubt totally evaporated by e few sentences on a piece of parchment that may or may not have really been from the Queen at all (although the Queen's seal was impossible to forge and just about every citizen knew the look, however Zack was unaware of this), the half dozen or so self appointed armed forces bean to move back towards the rafts they had floated down on. Only the leader came to a slow and then an eventual stop, seemingly waiting for the rest of his comrades to separate themselves from him before turning back towards Rose.

"How is the Queen and the kingdom, if you should know such knowledge?" the bushy militiaman asked in a tone both soft yet full of worry. Zack thought it strange that the events of what took place in Deningrad had not spread to the rest of the nation, after all it was only one serious casualty of note besides a sea of frontline soldiers. But perhaps that was knowledge they didn't want yet public.

Rose regarded the man for a time before answering.

"The Queen and the palace is safe. Many soldiers died in the battle, chief among them lady Miranda who sacrificed herself heroically for her Queen."

The man said nothing, although his eyes clouded over in a mixture of both sadness and happiness.

_However for mere travelling merchants such as us to know such information that the rest of the province does not will place undue suspicion on us once more. _Although after seeing the mixture of relief and grief in his eyes, a visible weight clearly lifted from a man who only wished to protect his town and country, Zack didn't know if he could tell him otherwise either. In the end the citizens of a nation at war should know the outcome of such a battle, and it pleased him to know at least on some fundamental level that Rose shared the same belief.

Contrary to what Zack thought would follow, the man said nothing more on the subject. He walked to join his comrades before telling us he'd ferry back a couple of boats that would grant us passage to the tavern. Nothing more.

Once the company of city police moved their way back towards the heart of the Furni, the three were left to wait for the next round to be ferried across. Without much to do but kill time, Zack asked a question that had till now been bothering him.

"You never mentioned you had a letter from the Queen herself."

"It was amongst the supplies Ramish granted us at the palace. To be honest I didn't really think it'd come into any use so I didn't see the point in mentioning it" Rose said.

Zack frowned at this. "Whether significant or not that is for the future to decide, in the mean time I'd rather you not keep things from me, no matter how small or useless you may think it. last I checked we are still partners, even if only by virtue of ambition."

Zack cursed his choice of words. He had no intention of picking a fight with his partner, but the way he worded his thoughts would do just that.

"Nothing was stopping you from looking at the contents yourself. I cannot spoon feed you every bit of information we come across. Important information of course I'll share, but anything outside that is your concern if you wish to know every detail."

Zack felt liquid fury begin to run from his mind to his mouth.

"What I don't like is it is up to you that chooses what is vital and what is not. Should something you deem not important turn out to be so, it could be dangerous for us all."

His mind returned to the standoff they had had back in Sandorian outskirts, when she had drawn her blade against him.

_Looks like I haven't moved past that as much as I'd believed. _

But he didn't blame himself for that, how could he? The ally he was travelling with would just as soon cut him down then help him if she thought it more beneficial to her own goals. While this incident of withheld information may be a small one, he couldn't help but feel that this wasn't the first, nor would be the last time she'd do so. In the end she would indeed only tell him what was absolutely necessary and in that regard he was no different from a tool or pawn to be used, the same as Wen had done not a short time ago.

_But I'm not stupid enough to make the same mistake twice _he swore. _It may suit you now, but there'll come a time where we'll be on even footing, perhaps even a time when I'll be the one using you. Don't think that I won't go to great lengths to achieve my own goals. _

Deciding it was best to keep such thoughts within rather than voice them and create further problem, Zack remained silent, as did all three of them before their ferries returned, and their path forward once more clear.

* * *

The hustle and bustle of the dual-storied pub that greeted Zack reminded him fondly of the various taverns within Bale. Zack welcomed this long since felt familiarity eagerly, feeling for the first time in a long, long while that he wasn't so far removed from home after all. The active crowd that buzzed around the bar and various tables, the loud, almost gravitating call of both sailor and citizen sitting together while they told tales of times both past and recent over a few cheery ales (this kind of upbeat tempo surprised them all considering the town faced almost certain massacre. Perhaps the news of Deningrad's victory had already spread?).

Rose and Zack were able to share a single raft, while Kongol, due to his enormous size had one to himself. Even then him and Rose remained close for fear of the small wooden canoe either capsizing or crumbling entirely under his mammoth weight. Zack wasn't sure if the Giganto could swim, but the comical idea of the colossus flailing miserably as the water slowly engulfed him stole away into Zack's mind every time he wondered. In the end however the small boat would prove more durable than it looks, as it ferried them all across without any hassles.

"The inside is surprisingly larger than the outward appearance would suggest" Zack said as he took in the warm atmosphere, the air pungent with smells common to most taverns: Ale, smoke, pine and at least in this one's case, sea salt. An inviting scene indeed.

It was odd knowing that below them was not a floor but the sea, however that was easily forgotten as the mixed materials that seemed somehow hollow as their footsteps reverberated like they were in a cave and not an open kind of alcove like inn would block that view. The structures didn't quake nor quiver no matter how hard the waves crashed against the base, and Zack found himself once more wondering who exactly it was that decided to built a settlement atop the water, and how that person (or group of people) manage to harvest the necessary resources.

"It's getting late, we'll rest here for the night then observe some of the trade tomorrow. Once we find an opening we'll take it."

Zack, all too open to the idea, grinned roguishly. "Then would you care to share a drink or two?" The idea of an inebriated Rose was as comical as the one of a sinking Kongol.

"Of water perhaps, but none of the alcoholic kind. The last thing we need at this point is dulled senses or a wicked morning hang over."

Zack sighed in disappointment. "Does that mean I can't have any either?"

"I can't tell you what to do, but you'll get no mercy from me if you get yourself in trouble or wake up with any ill effects of too much drinking. We have a mission to do, remember that."

"Doesn't mean we can't kick back and enjoy a couple while we can. 'Specially when these times don't come often at all."

Rose shrugged. "Do what you will, just try to get a good night's sleep. That is also a commodity we won't be afforded often from here on out."

With that she began to move towards the middle of the circular room where a generously large, oval shaped bar was set up in the centre with a good amount of barmaids serving on all fronts for the ever growing patrons.

Zack watched her for a time, she was likely going to talk to the one in charge of getting their rooms organised, then he moved towards one of the very few tables not in use. He offered to drink with Kongol, but as expected he merely shook his head and stood as still as stone. Shrugging it off he took up a rather unstable stool. As if watched, like many potential customers were, one of the many wondering barmaids not forced to serve behind the central desk wondered towards him immediately.

"A drink?" She asked with a warm smile. She was older, old enough to be his mother were she still alive, but her eyes still showed an affectionate resonance most would have lost after one usually does when spending considerable amount of time looking after the drunk.

"Would be much appreciated" Zack said with an engaging smile of his own. She nodded and took off towards the middle of the pub.

She was back within a minute or two, a large mug of home brewed ale in hand which was quickly swapped out for a few silver coins. The woman took them gladly and disappeared amongst the roaring crowd.

_It's been a while _Zack thought as he took a rather large sip. _It's not half bad. _Not as goo of course as the brew in Bale or even that in Fletz, but it was nice enough to enjoy and the cold liquid soothed his parched throat like medicine.

Unfortunately, at least for him, the night wasn't going quite as trouble free as he would have liked. He hadn't emptied more than half of his mug before he spotted what appeared to be a bearded (and rather intoxicated) sailor given his hat and typical white and blue vest and pants, stagger over towards Rose who was drinking a glass of water in one of the dim corners of the pub.

_this should be interesting _Zack thought and he got up from his chair and moved towards the two for a close look. Not too close to be noticed, but close enough so he could be within earshot.

"New around here?" he said with an audible slur. He was gruff, unrefined and perhaps more importantly unclean, what was once probably a nice outfit now stained with both beer and body excretion.

Rose gave him a sidelong look before her gaze turned back to her glass of water. After that she wouldn't even acknowledge the sailor's existence.

The sailor drew a little closer.

"How about I buy you a drink a little less nicer eh? Something that'll make you a little more sociable."

Zack could hardly contain his laughter. This was going to be amusing indeed.

"I'd appreciate it if you'd remove yourself from my presence" Rose responded coldly. She still didn't lift her eyes to even regard the man hoping to coerce her into a drink.

The sailors face flickered for a moment, from enjoyment to one akin of anger or annoyance before the expression disappeared. This oaf was obviously prone to anger and violence when things didn't go his way, as many drunkards were. Still, he saw no reason for alarm, if he did try anything stupid, Rose would set him straight, and would do it quick.

_But we are supposed to be trying to remain inconspicuous. _Zack supposed he'd step in if need be, but at this point it would likely only result in the angering the sailor more. A sharp glare from Rose would probably be all it would take for the drunk to shrink away under its relentless pressure.

"I urge you to reconsider lass. We are rowdy to be sure, and even perhaps seemingly obnoxious, but times are hard, we are stranded men looking for a little company before we can do what we love to do, sail the seas. A drink or two can't hurt, surely?"

He said this with a lot more fluidity then any of his previous sentences, and it even sounded heartfelt, despite the fact if you judged from the flare on his face not a few moments ago this was clearly not genuine. But if Zack noticed this, then Rose did as well.

Finally Rose did lock eyes with the sailor. As expected, her eyes were as icy as the snow this continent was renewed for.

"I'd hate to have to repeat myself. Now go back to your crew and continue as you were."

This time when the sailors eyes blazed with indignant rage it did not disappear. Zack immediately stiffened at the prospect of the situation turning physical. It might be better for him to settle it after all, at least that way the gutsy marine would escape with only a few bruises, perhaps a tooth or two missing at most. If he were to try anything on Rose, he could expect to lose a whole lot more.

However the intervention of a certain Giganto would stop it from accumulating to anything further. Stepping behind the brazen fellow who wasn't willing to move away quietly, Kongol came to a stop with an emphatic stomp. When the sailor turned, he was met with the leering white eyes of a creature almost double his size.

Kongol didn't need to say a word. His intense stare said all that needed to be said: If he would not do as Rose asked, he would not be dealing with her but the bronze skinned giant that made him appear a mere child.

Try as he might to hide it, the sailor's face betrayed a very obvious expression of terror. Zack could hardly blame him, if Kongol ever turned those volatile eyes upon himself he would have the same reaction. Only very few people of this planet like Rose could stand face to face with such a immense being and not give in to fear.

As for the sailor, he finally did what he should have done the first time he was requested to do so and began to move away from the two towards the table he had come from. Zack hadn't noticed until now, but the pub had grown silent, all eyes on all three of them, partly he supposed because this drunkard was likely a repeat offender of such forceful desires, but most of it probably had to do with the fact that a beast that towered over ten feet had taken to the stage.

As the sailor slinked off, head bowed, face burning with humiliation, he turned to Rose a final time. The mug he had carried with him, full of ale, was tossed toward Rose, the contents sailing towards her like a liquid projectile. Rose appeared to anticipate this, or at least had some awareness it was coming in the last moment because she was able to jump back a step and avoid most of the airborne fluid. Most, but not all. Some of it splattered on her shoes and legs, drenching the single lavender stocking she wore on her left leg that covered to the top of her thigh.

Then the offender disappeared within the crowd, presumably (at least if he knew what was good for him) heading to the exit.

Rose looked down at her leaking legs and shoes with a distant kind of acknowledgment, shook her head then began to move towards the north-western end of the bar, where there was a staircase leading to the upper levels of the tavern.

Zack moved towards Kongol where they both exchanged a glance, then they both followed. They caught up to her by the time she reached the top of the stairs, where a narrow hallway greeted them, six doors on each partition that lead to one of the Inn's twelve rooms.

"Hey" Zack called, halting her advance. Rose turned slowly, as if doing so was a great effort.

"You all right?" He asked.

"Fine" she said. "It's not the first time I've been a part of bar foolery."

But Zack could detect a hint of serious dissatisfaction border lining outright offense. Was she that upset about being doused in a little liquor? Or was it something else?

"I'm heading into my room to clean up. Yours is on the other side of mine, Kongol's is to the left."

With that she moved inside her rented room and closed the door, leaving both Zack and Kongol standing in the hallway.

* * *

Rose didn't think it'd be enough to give Zack the not so subtle hint to leave her be, and true to form he came barging in after her.

Rose crossed the small space between the doorway and the single bed which was both small and rather worn (although it was certainly clean, thank goodness for small blessings) and sat on the edge facing the door. She immediately began to remove her well worn travelling shoes.

"Don't want to talk about it?" Zack said, breaking the silence of communication.

"There is nothing to talk about" Rose said, her tone waspish. The shoes removed, she began to remove the thin wrapping that covered her foot to avoid chafing which still often occurred during the longer parts of their journey.

"I find it hard to believe you'd be so visible shaken by something as small as a bit of ale, so there must be more to it."

_I didn't think a time would come where I'd rue his recent sharpness _Rose thought solemnly.

"I'd rather you drop it" she said with a softening tone. Her feet now bare now, if a little damp, she began to process of taking off the violet stocking, starting from her thigh and slipping it off down her doused leg and ankle. Her pale left leg now in plain view in a way that very few ever saw, Rose suddenly felt as naked as she did without her sword.

"Your leg..." Zack said a little surprised. Glancing at it herself she followed the deep gash that ran from the top of her calf to the bottom, only inches away from where the back of her ankle began. It was an unsightly scar to be sure, a slight reddish purple aggravation that jagged like a stretched snake. Despite Shirley's best efforts of recovery, this scar, one of the first of many she had suffered, would always remain. Although she was never one to worry about trifling matters like marred appearances, it was the meaning behind the scar that was truly ugly, not the unattractive blemish itself.

"A slashing wound" Zack deducted, studying the wound intently. Rose said nothing, only waited for the question she thought was surely ensure. For the second time that night Zack surprised her.

"Is that why you wear the cloth legging? To hide the scar?"

Rose, who was prepared for inquiry of _how_ she got the scar, not why she covered it was momentarily taken aback. She let out a brief dry laugh, which visibly put Zack on edge. And why shouldn't it? How many times had she actually laughed in front of him?

"You think I'm the type to worry about such a thing?" she responded with a shake of her head. Granted she had revealed very little about herself during their travels, he should at least know this much.

"Not really, but you are a woman after all. I don't think it inconceivable that you'd worry about such an obvious disfigurement."

"I have left my femininity well and truly behind me. Were it not for my physical traits, you could hardly call me a woman at all."

Zack shrugged at this. "I don't really believe that. Eleven thousand years old or no, you must have some female megrims hidden beneath that shell of ruthlessness."

"I display plenty of other scars on my other leg, not to mention the rest of my body when not in armour. Why would I go through such an effort to conceal a single wound? I reiterate, how I appear to others worries me not at all."

Zack grew silent once more, taking this information in before his gaze fell upon the unique hosiery that looked somehow regal with its gold threaded trimmings that circled both ends.

"If what you say is true, then does the piece of clothing hold some kind of meaning to you? I can't really imagine you going through all the effort to wear it, especially during combat if it didn't."

"It does" Rose said, then realised how easily she fell into his trap and was telling him everything. Although trap wasn't really the right word, he didn't create this out of any real cunningness, it was just easy to be swept away by his naturally easy-going disposition. He really was more like Zeig in more ways than one.

_Stop this foolishness, you cannot continue to compare the two _she berated once more. Had she not already promised she'd stop such stupidity? Had she not learned by making the same mistake by comparing Dart to Zeig?

"I would like to hear the story of how such an item became so precious to you, although admittedly I can already kinda guess it must've been one of your comrades from the Dragon Campaign."

And why not? He had already seen and guessed most of which she had tried to hide and there was nothing left for it to tell him the story he wanted to hear. The quicker he found out the quicker he'd leave her in quiet anyhow.

"It was from a time I was both young and stupid. Drunk off of the power of the dragon that flowed through my body I made a mistake that not only gave me a grievous wound, but also cost the lives of many innocent people and put the entire campaign to usurp the Winglies in jeopardy."

"Dragonlust?" Zack asked almost knowingly.

Rose frowned, giving it some thought. "In a sense perhaps... But I think it more accurate to say I was drunk off my own lust and power, or at least power I thought I had. With every seemingly impossible victory, with every Wingly outpost and city we laid waste to, it fed our ever growing confidence. Mine peaked at the wrong time, and consequently it led to a mistake that not only put our entire group and army we were commanding in danger, but all of humanity's struggle."

Zack could offer no real response. He only nodded sympathetically, yet his eyes told her he wanted to hear more.

"Being a slave to the Winglies for many years created an almost inbred hatred for them. All people barring a select few who's benevolent soul transcended such emotions, people like Shirely, harboured such a feeling on one level or another. In any event such feelings are impossible to understand, you had to actually experience it firsthand to do so. None the less we managed to launch a decisive assault on one of their main cities in the Crystal Palace. Mind you the city around it was far different from what it is now, but it took even the Winglies by surprise. To attack the birth city that deemed whether their offspring were worthy of being raised was something so audacious that it was thought unimaginable. Our mission was simple, to take the city, either by killing all its citizens, razing it to the ground or forcing the Winglies to flee. After a titanic battle, the latter was what occurred, they fled the city, leaving it in our hands."

Rose paused a moment, her mind reliving the experience.

"As Dragoon Knights didn't always travel as a group, in fact it was more often that we headed our own human battalions all with different objectives. Once we attained control of the town, we were to cease fighting and regroup immediately, that was the always the decided plan. However in the heat of the moment, as I saw the Winglies flee like mice... I decided to change that objective and hunt down every one of them and crush them. I justified it in my mind by telling myself the less that survive, the less we have to deal with later, but in the end it was only to sate my own bloodlust."

Rose gave Zack a moment to comment or ask any question that he thought necessary to ask, and when none came she continued. It looked like he was going to wait until the tale was finished before speaking.

"I led my group of warriors outside the city on a hunt. The reason why we were to immediately regroup and fortify our position was because the escaping enemies were going to do the same. They would reform themselves and counterattack, after all they were not going to let one of their fabled birth cities fall into enemy hands so easily. As I continued to kill I ran into a large group of already reorganizing Winglies. They regrouped faster than I or any of us could ever think, as their group surpassed mine in numbers by a fair margin. It was almost like an ambush, and when the fighting began my battalion was quickly demolished. Were it not for Zeig's reinforcements, none of us would have survived."

Finally Zack did ask a question. "As far as I know, Winglies are attuned to magic. So how did you get a scar that implies the use of a human weapon?"

Rose let out a small chuckle, only this was devoid of humour and full of dark irony.

"Because the wound was from a human weapon. My own soldier gave me the wound."

Zack expressed shock at this. "What!? Your own man attacked you?"

Rose affirmed. "We were huddled in a tight space when the fighting began, made worse by the fact the Winglies, in an unorthodox fashion engaged us up close. Even though I was in my Dragoon form, I had to remain grounded otherwise airborne I'd make myself an obvious target for their ranged artillery. back to back, one of the frightened soldiers turned and lashed out at me out of reflex. It managed to slip by the gap in my leg armour and slash the unprotected side of calf." Another humourless laugh. "Do you know how small the chances are of a the weapon slashing my on just the right angle, in the just the right place at just the right time, not to mention both our placements, for the weapon to slip into the unguarded side of my leg and cut me that badly? Virtually non-existent. It was almost as if the gods themselves sought to punish my impudence."

"Even we must have gaps in our armour for mobility purposes" Zack agreed. "They are small gaps, but still large enough for a thin blade to slip through if slashed in the right place..."

"Always remember that even as a Dragoon Knight, you are far from invincible. The wound managed to not only to maim me but it would have killed me were it not for close by medical personal who managed to stop the haemorrhaging."

Zack flinched but added nothing.

"It severed numerous arteries and ligaments. Healing aided by magic repaired most of it, but even magic has its limits. I was not only sidelined for an extended time, but nearly crippled in the process. Many died, I nearly died and the Winglies were in danger of taking back the city we fought and sacrificed so much because I was foolish and made rash decisions that went against reason. This scar would forever be a reminder of that."

"But had you not crushed the survivors when you did, allowing them to recover may have been just as fatal if not more so. Even if your judgment was clouded by revenge, it may have still been the right decision."

"Were my slaughtered men the only consequence then you may have been right, I could have justified it even if my actions were all for the wrong reasons. But especially in a war, a seemingly small error can have dire consequences that ripple out like splash in water. The men I lost meant that the ones remaining after the battle were will ill numbered to defended from a certain counter-attack. We had to get reinforcements from our home land in Gloriano, west of Mille Seseau. It was an icy snow land even harsher than Mille Seseau, for even this continent has it's greenery, but against Winglies that could not only fly but harness mobile attack devices like the Tower of Flanvel which flew in the skies like a skewed monolithic canon, our base of operations was always under constant threat of annihilation. Thinning our eroding forces further to cover the loss of my mistake left many of the smaller forts around the mountain valleys that connected the two landmasses vulnerable and consequently decimated. In the end the death count extended far beyond the battle I participated, and I was solely responsible for it."

Rose took a moment to compose herself, the vivid memory of her failure creating a heat to boil within her full of contempt and self loathing. Once she swallowed it down like the urge to vomit she resumed once more, her deposition back to its stoic usualness.

"My leg to this day has never recovered one hundred percent, although many years of training have made the slight disadvantage basically non-existent. What small loss of mobility I earned I made up for by being more mobile with my other leg. But still I had to spend time in recovery, missing some upcoming important battles. It nearly killed me, not being able to help fight for the humanity I wished so desperately to save. Yet at some point, after Zeig had battled and found himself with a little downtime before his next, he managed to visit me. On one particular occasion he presented me with this cloth legging, fashion with a colour that matched the rest of my battle garments. It offered no protection, yet the light and thin quality of it meant it would not hinder me in battle either. He was trying to cheer me up I suppose, told me the less I have to look at my wound the better, so once I can I should put it on and never take it off. Of course I thought this foolish and didn't, at least not to begin with. But once he perished in the final battle I went back only to realise I had very little from him in the way of possession to remind me of his warmness and all the good things he did for me... I donned it immediately and removed it only when I had to."

Rose then sighed, realising she had spoke a whole lot more then she initially intended it. It felt like a damn confession of some kind, at least to her it did. They say it's better to talk about things that bother you, but after the experience Rose could honestly say she felt no better than before Zack entered the room.

"So that's why you got so upset it was soiled" Zack said thoughtfully.

"It'll only need a wash, if nothing more to get the reeking stench out, but it'll do no lasting damage. It's magically embodied so it won't tear nor fray. Like my previous existence it is almost ageless."

Rose turned introspective, and like a clam that had for a small time opened to expose the tender pearl underneath, she closed herself off, snapping shut as she so often did. Zack got the message immediately and began to walk towards the exit of the room.

"Thank you for sharing your tale. One time soon I'll share one of my own in compensation, although it'll be far less grand than any of yours." He flashed a smile to show the good nature of his jest, but given the unmoving, stone like look that greeted him, he made little success of it.

"Let us get some sleep, we will be up early tomorrow and who is to know what other problems will await us"

Zack agreed, bode her a goodnight then shut the door behind him. With that sound came a feeling of intense loneliness, like a raging fire that had suddenly been doused and what was left was a contrasting coldness. The feeling only lasted a moment, but it was a feeling so intense she had to quell the urge to get up and actually ask him to keep her company, even if just for a few minutes longer. But instead she did what she always did. She finished her nightly chores, turned off the lights and brooded well into the night until sleep would eventually claim her, where she would continue to brood within the depths of her unceasing nightmares.

* * *

Rose's sleep was short lived as it always was. She was up well before dawn, the moon still only half way through its descent before the sun would replace it on the other side of the horizon, and with not much else to do but a whole lot (too much really) of mulling things over, she decided to do the only thing that cleared her mind: She practiced her sword fighting. With both the tavern and the town totally silent, she was able to easily slip out and move towards the entrance where she took only her thick hide coat and rapier. After spending nearly two hours sparring with her shadow, managing to heat her body to the point of perspiration despite the cold, she returned to her room, bathed in the local and unoccupied bath house, then finally set her mind to what would and could lay ahead.

As the sun rose, it's shimmering light dazzling the clear blue ocean, there was a knock on the door. She expected it to be Zack, or Kongol if not, but she was surprised when she was instead met with the same grizzly aging man that questioned her the day before upon their arrival.

"You are Rose?" He questioned sternly. Rose didn't respond, but something in her face apparently betrayed her momentary recoil at being abruptly called her name by a man who should have no such knowledge of it.

"I see" he said with a nod. "So it is indeed true..."

Any thoughts at denial now fled her mind. She had made it painfully obvious and to do so would only make things more suspicious. All she could do now was either kill the man in hopes her identity died with him or hope that he would not make it common knowledge if he had not done so already. After a moments deliberation she chose the latter.

"I would ask you keep this to yourself" Rose requested although put no real expectation upon it.

The man nodded. "I had every intention of doing so. But I feel it prudent that you also know my name. I know you probably don't care, but none the less I'll feel a litte better about doing it. Skip is my name for what it's worth."

Skip was right about one thing, she had no concerned about the name he was given at birth, but she felt no need to voice this. Instead she remained silent and let him continue with his business.

"There is someone I would like you to meet. This person vouches for your intent but more importantly offers access across the sea. He is waiting at the docks across the jetty, I suggest you get your crew together and meet him as soon as possible." With that, the man named Skip promptly left, apparently lingering only as much as his business would dictate. That was fine, with this new revelation she had a lot more to think about. A possible trap or ambush for instance, as she can recall no person that would vouch for her intentions in a town such as this. The fact that all sea trade were being at least in some way monitored by Sandora also added to her concern even if what Skip said was true. In the end however think over it as much as she may, it was the only lead they currently had about a way out of Mille Seseau. A trap it may turn out to be, but in the end there was nothing more for it then to go for the ride and let happen what will happen. With that in mind, Rose moved to alert her other two companions about the situation at hand.

* * *

When Rose told Zack about the meeting with someone who was apparently willing to grant them passage across the sea, he too was met with a feeling of intense unease. Kongol said nothing when Rose explained her visit from one of the militia men, as always his area of expertise was in battle, and like a caged animal waiting to be unleashed he simply waited for the next chance to display his well honed battle prowess. The Giganto still nodded, affirming at least some level of understanding, but Zack wondered if any of the finer details mattered to him. In his mind it seemed that all that did matter was whether the state of affairs would turn into a bloodbath or not. None the less he was glad to have him close by, if for whatever reason things did turn violent, it was nice to know you had a giant wrecking ball as an ally close at hand.

As promised, they waited atop a giant, wooden-planked jetty that had a girth wide enough to accommodate at least ten Kongol's. It spanned off far past the odd layout of the town and into the Illisa Sea. Fragmenting off from the large pier on both sides at what appeared to be calculated intervals were small docking stations where ships of even larger sizes could pull into. There had to be at least close to a dozen docks that spanned off each side of the large wharf, and as the trio walked briskly across the never ending jetty, Zack was only now just grasping how large the shipping trade was for this town literally built around such a foundation.

The dense morning fog that was like a veiled shroud made it hard to gauge the total distance of the pier, but it had to be a few hundred meters at least, perhaps as long as a kilometre. The port itself was empty, no ships, no sailors or crewmen to found anywhere and this only added to the eerie atmosphere that had settled upon the them. Only the soft breaking of small waves as it brushed upon the beams that held the jetty aloft along with the distant cawing of gulls broke what would otherwise near silence.

"Did the guy actually mention _where _on this massive port we were to meet this mystery person?" Zack asked, no longer able to bear the silence. Nerves really were setting in now, even more so than usual. He guessed it had to do with the ambiance and thick fog which made an ambush all too plausible.

"No, but keep verbal communication to a minimum. What we cannot see we must hear, smell and feel" Rose said in a low, rough tone. He guessed that she was a wary as he was.

Even Kongol, whose footsteps you could hear a mile away moved with deliberate caution, remaining quite as possible while keeping one hand clasped over the handle of his massive battle axe that hung over his back and shoulders.

The three continued to move forward as quiet as possible for a time longer when eventually, as the haze of the new day began to lift, they spotted at least three figures standing idly ahead. They could not yet make out what or who they were, and as such they all stiffened at once, weapons at the ready.

As quiet as they may have been they were still loud enough for the group of unknown persons to detect them. As Zack, Rose and Kongol came to a stop, the group covered by the fog began to move towards them. Judging by their silhouettes they were very open, almost too open to be soldiers or trained mercenaries.

_But that doesn't mean they aren't _Zack thought cautiously.

When the unidentified faction came into view both Zack and Rose were shocked to find out they indeed knew who at least one of these people were.

"Paula!?" Zack said with open astonishment. The aging captain flashed a wry grin.

"Strange circumstances construct strange meetings" Paula said as he moved to offer Zack an open hand. Zack took it gladly and gave it a strong shake.

"You were the last person I expected to see here!" Zack said, happy to see a familiar face. Paula moved to repeat the same action to Rose, but instead of a greeting hand Paula was met with the hard steel of her rapier. Zack and the crewmen behind the captain all gasped at once.

"In case you forgotten Zack last time we met Paula was in leagues with Wen and his self-produce faction."

Comprehension then dawned on him. _Shit! I had forgotten that in light of meeting a friendly face._

As Rose rested the tip of her weapon against the unprotected heart of the captain, Paula slowly raised his hands above his head.

"Listen Rose, I understand your distrust. But believe me when I say I had no idea."

"I care not whether or not you knew, what I care about is whether or not you are still one of his puppets. Know that if I sense any deceit in your claims I will cut you down where you stand."

The blaze of her stone eyes told them all that she was not bluffing in the slightest.

Paula braced himself uncomfortably under the threatening point of Rose's weapon but held out a halting hand to the comrades behind him that appeared ready to come to his aid. The three of them gave him a questioning look which he placated his crewmen's worries by giving them a stern nod.

"Officially I am under the influence of Sandora. Officially I am spearheading one of the main trade fleets between here and the continent of Serdio. Officially I have sworn fealty to said country and all its causes. However personally..." Paula moved his eyes from side to side as if to make sure no one else was watching or listening. "I would love nothing more than to see Sandora burn." The fire in the captains eyes told Zack at least that this was no lie. That fire was filled with both fury and regret. "So I say this with the utmost certainty when I claim that I will do anything to help you and your objectives."

The captain and Rose continued to lock eyes for a while longer, before Rose eventually withdrew her blade. Paula let out an audible sigh of relief. Zack could hardly blame him, when a woman like Rose held you at blade-point, you really did fear for your own life, that much he knew from experience.

"I suppose I'll have to believe you, at least for now" Rose said in a voice that was noncommittal.

"You have my thanks." Paula said and even bowed. "Once we heard that the one who would take Hytas' place as King was our leader himself, our faction grew outraged to say the least. With revenge on our minds for all those who were sacrificed, we launched an assault on Sandora in hopes of ending the conflict once and for all."

Paula's expression turned gloomy. "I ferried many across in an effort to attack not only from the front by from nearby beaches as well. In the end the siege didn't last more than a day, most of us were slaughtered like animals. Wen must have expected such an outcome as the army appeared ready, in a high state of alert."

"Silly indeed' Rose said. "Especially considering they would be in ever so vigilant after we escaped a short while before."

Paula nodded gravely. "Those not killed outright had the choice of serving the newly proclaimed King Wen once more or being executed on the spot. As you can see, begrudgingly, I chose the former."

Paula dropped his head in shame.

"It was not my finest moment, perhaps I am indeed a coward, but I did not want to die, not in vain like that as it would have been had I chosen to struggle."

Rose said nothing to this, but Zack felt a strong pang of sympathy.

"The point is you're alive, and because of that you can help us out where we would have otherwise had none" Zack said in an effort to console the captain.

Turning his mind back to business, the good captain nodded. "Skip informed me about your arrival. Although he didn't mention names, your descriptions were obvious enough." he regarded Kongol this time. "Yours in particular. It is good to see you again."

Kongol gave a grunt that was somehow not unfriendly.

"I'm due to do another cargo run from here across Serdio. I can ferry you across, however... it will be difficult. Sandora have set up many check points for thorough search of any cargo that comes and goes across the border. Very diligent are Imperial Empire at the moment."

"Can you sneak us through?" Zack asked.

Paula hesitated. "I can only try. If worst comes to worst I can try and hide you in one of the many shipping containers and hope they do not search over every nook and cranny as they have done in the past. Otherwise..."

"We will deal with them one way or the other" Rose intervened. Both Zack and Paula saw the murderous spark in her hard eyes, to which the captain protested immediately.

"Open hostility is not a recourse we can follow. You may be able to get away with it, if you can dock and continue to evade on land perhaps, however when Sandora learn of such a forced entry their gaze will fall upon me and my crew. I cannot endanger them in such an blatant manner, such treason will surely result in execution for all of us."

Zack concurred. "I'm all for doing what we can to free the slaved cities, but not at the expense of the few allies we have left. We will have to think of a way outside violence."

"Usually there is always the chance of bribery, however..." Paula trailed off for a moment, having trouble with the finish.

"With our wanted status for murdering their former King, no amount of money would allow us through" Rose finished. Paula nodded.

"Don't suppose pretending to be prisoners will do the trick?" Zack suggested without much hope.

"If you think you can escape with a fleet of Sandorian ships as escorts, be my guest" the captain replied.

"What about transforming and flying overhead?" Zack said, proposing his second idea. This time it was Rose who rejected it.

"Over such a large expanse of sea that would take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks to traverse, even with the flying power of our Dragoons? Good luck maintaining the energy to overcome such an impossible feat."

Zack let out a grunt of exasperation. "We have the means right in front of us, there must be something we can do."

"What exactly is this plan of yours?" Paula inquired softly. Zack answered.

"One by one to free the cities under Sandora's grasp, also gaining a resistance force of our own. We're gonna hit Fletz first due to its distance so far from Sandora's natural hub, then move slowly inland, hoping to gather more willing soldiers as we go. Eventually the idea is to free Fletz, Basil along with any other towns under occupation and bring the war to Sandora's doorstep. Bereft of all their support, we might have a real chance at crushing them."

"It is certainly a long shot" Paula said with a dry grin. "Although inactive resistances are plentiful, Sandora's iron grip strikes fear into any who would go against them. It'll certainly take a monumental accomplishment to stir the masses into action."

"If the Dragon Campaign has taught me one thing" Rose began. "It is that the harder we are pushed and oppressed, the more dangerous we become. All that it requires is a spark, as Emperor Diaz was the spark that kindled the embers of our dying race in my time, we shall be the ones to do so now."

Zack was surprised at Rose's rather optimistic outlook towards a painting that was shaping up to be very, very bleak. Despite her nature to almost incessantly point out the cynical whenever possible, within her core there really did burn a belief that people as a whole can overcome adversity. It did Zack a world of good to hear it and warmed his heart wholly.

The veteran commander of more ships than even he could count nodded thoughtfully. "And it is now more than ever that we need such a reason. Something is going on here Rose, something big. Bigger than a mere struggle of land ownership I think. I don't know a whole lot, but there is an air of uncertainty, within Sandora as well as the endless sea I sail on. All is not what it seems, not on the inside or the outside. Most are just too scared to question it, and in that regard the people and soldiers of Sandora are just as much a victim and are in need of liberating than any other country. They have been lied to and manipulated, but what is more worrisome is that they are feared into believing it, even when the obvious is right there in plain sight to see. It takes a truly terrifying power to do that."

Zack hadn't thought much about the idea the Wen may not be the end game player they all thought he was, hadn't dared too, was too scared to think that someone or something even more sinister than his old comrade was pulling the strings from behind the scenes, but now more than ever before the idea flooded his mind and Zack found it impossible to quell.

_Impossible. Wen is not the type to play second fiddle to anyone. _It was a logical answer, but it didn't reassure him as much as he would have liked. What if Wen was only a red herring to distract them from an even greater force?

Rose voiced what Zack could only think in the corners of his mind.

"You don't think this is only Wen's doing?" she said, her tone impossibly flat as if she had considered this all along.

"It's hard to say" Paula stammered unsurely. "But no, I think that he is only a part of an even greater threat, a storm cloud in a cluster of an oncoming cyclone. This all feels like a lead up to the true finale, and I fear that conclusion will end with not one nation holding power, but in one dealing out destruction."

"We can only do what we can for the moment and work with what we know. What we do know is that even if Wen is only a pawn at worst, he is an important one. One that can give us the information we need if we can just get a hold of him. But to do that we need an army that rivals his."

"I believe in you, in all of you. You have saved us from the clutches of certain destruction once before, and I will trust you will do so again. To that end I will do my best to grant you passage to Fletz. It is a risk, but given your own resolves I speak for all of my crew when I say it is one we are all willing to take. We must all do our part in the end. I only hope the seas will find us a way to avoid the ever watchful eye of Sandora."

"This means certain treachery Paula, as you said earlier it'll mean certain death for your crew" Zack said, not at all happy with the decision. What frustrated him greater however was that he could think of no other alternative from being stranded in a far away river town where they could do nothing.

"Perhaps" the captain said thoughtfully. "Perhaps not. In the end what will be will, we can only play our part. You three are the only ones who can create a big enough shake to really stirs things up as it currently stands."

"We'll gladly accept the offer" Rose said abruptly. "We would like to leave as soon as we can."

"Are you serious? We'll be captured for sure! Did you forget the part where we're wanted and they have total control of the sea throughout Tiberoa and Serdio?"

His plea seemed to have fell on deaf ears. She was talking to the captain, her focus squarely on Paula.

"I don't have much to offer, only a rather small nameless cargo ship." The captain's bushy lips smiled ironically. "No luxurious ride on the Poseidon this time around."

"It'll suit us fine. Show us the way" Was Rose's only response. Paula glanced at Kongol who gave a stern nod, then at him. The captain's gaze lingered on him a few moments in a way that was somehow shrewd and knowing.

"You'd make a fine captain I think" he said gravely. "A captain must be ever vigilant, not only of the capricious seas that can turn from serene to volatile at seconds notice, but also the weight of his own responsibility. But sometimes, even in the face of adversity, a great captain will know that no matter the risk, the only way is forward."

Leaving Zack to mull over those words Paula and his crew led Rose and Kongol back down the jetty from where they had come from. After a few bemused seconds, Zack followed.

* * *

It didn't take them long at all to set sail, in fact the time it took to leave on one of the large harbours branching off Furni's giant jetty suggested that despite Paula's initial claim to the contrary, he and his crew were ready to ferry them all along. All he needed was to test their resolve, to make sure that the risk they all took was worth the outcome.

The cargo ship was far from large as the captain suggested, only a small freight under the ever imposing banner of Sandora. The ship was only as long as fifty meters from the stern to the rear, and even that was being generous, and was only four levels deep. The bottom consisted of the engine rooms along with the hull and other necessary compartments central to the mobility of the ship, while the bulk of the third deck was used to house most of (and what was considered most precious) of the cargo goods. The second was crew members rooms, kitchens and dining rooms while the top deck held any inexpensive cargo that couldn't fit below along with various level cranked cranes that appeared to be used to move the on board goods. Outside that everything else is what you'd expect of any normal ship, commercial or no, masts, sails, lookouts along with basic sea defences like cannons other projectile based equipment. But to Rose it was all superfluous, if it came down to a sea battle with anything else but a similar cargo ship, they would easily be overpowered by less ancient artillery.

As the ship set sail for the Tiberoan continent Rose, Zack and Kongol chose to explore the ship separately and at their own leisure. After a little exploring Rose grew tired of looking at one of the many boats she had seen in her time and retired to one of the deckhand cabins. As one would expect from a ship primarily made for delivery and not luxury, the cabins were small and cramped. Small rooms filled with two dual bunk-beds, one on the bottom one on top along with a small table and a cross between a desk and drawer where one could horde personal supplies was all that were afforded. This worried Rose not at all, in fact the almost claustrophobic nature of the room somehow put her at ease. Kongol would likely not fit and have to find elsewhere to sleep, so she would have to share with Zack, who was at the moment more inclined to enjoy the scenery outside. For now she leaned against the wooden supports of the dual layered beds and began to contemplate. What would they do when they hit Tiberoan waters?

No answer came to her. What they did from here on out could not really be planned out anyway, it was all on the fly. This did go against her nature of calculated carefulness, but the time for that was now over. The time to make a stand, no matter the risks, was now.

And so came a few days of relative peace and quiet. Navigating the Illisa Bay covered so much ground in comparison to making the continental journey on foot that Zack voiced it akin to the bad punch line of a bad joke. The broken Sunset Isles could be seen in the far distance to the north east, tropical islands that somehow resembled Rouge looked like a beautiful retreat when compared to the stark view of the endless desert of Death Frontier that stuck out from to the west as they looped towards Donau, a trip which would take them close to a week. The top deck view however could only be admired for a short couple of days before Paula insisted the three of them remain below deck as to avoid any unwanted surveillance, much to Zack's displeasure. He had spent most of his time on the top deck, but when that was no longer an option he could only sit around for so long before his endless restlessness drove him to do something more productive. He helped the crew in just about any way they would allow, he helped in the engine room, cleaned and even cooked when necessary. Zack really was, to Rose at least, like a small child with boundless amounts of energy.

Kongol meanwhile did what he always did when not fighting: He waited. Seeking solitude in one of the large container rooms on the lower levels, Kongol was once more struck by the modern architecture of human progression. He wasn't intelligent enough to understand it, even the Giganto understood this, but he was still sharp enough to admire it, admire it yet hate it. It was this kind of human industrial evolution that created the tools to annihilate his entire species. Indeed such machinery were things to be admired, but also feared.

The three only came into group contact twice a day. Once in the morning and once at night. What they discussed of course were two things: What they were going to do once they hit Sandorian patrolled waters, and what they were going to do once they reached Tiberoa.

And so the process repeated without any real answer to either question and the days quickly evaporated like a puddle of water under a relentless sun. The weather proved kind during their tenure upon the seas and so within five days they breached the Tiberoan part of Illisa Bay. This was when things were going to get difficult. Sandora would surely have both checkpoints and scouts set across the border to observe any and all activity, shipping trade least of all. All they could hope for now was lax security, at least lax enough for them to remain hidden from any inspection.

Crew members promised to keep them posted as they hid within the crewmember's quarter. As thorough as Sandora were with checking precious cargo, they weren't necessarily as diligent when it came to combing through cabin rooms. Yet that didn't mean they wouldn't do so, and as such men were on hand to let them know to move locations at a seconds notice. Kongol could only fit through by bending on all fours, as awkward as it was, but for the time being it would have to do.

The three of them all held their proverbial breaths for the encounters to come.

* * *

It was to be thankful their breaths were held figuratively and not literally, because were that the case then they would be all well and truly dead. Seconds turned to minutes, then minutes to hours. Hourly updates were provided but so far they all came with the same message: All was clear.

No checkpoints or even a scour ship in sight, just open waters inviting them to sail ever closer. Dangerously inviting. Rather than take this as a stroke of luck, they all assumed it a stroke of ill fortune. Had a trap been set? Were they mere mice heading towards the distance cheese while a mousetrap lays underneath?

Until now the trio were greeted with twelve updates every hour on the hour. That was until recently, where enough time passed that is was sure to be at least two or three hours, perhaps as much as four. Still no word on what was happening over head.

"Can't be a battle can it? We'd hear that, surely" Zack muttered nervously.

Rose ignored him, her expression one of focused scrutiny. While unlikely, it was possible some kind of quiet, surprise attack was launched, especially when you factor in the enemy's recent acquisition of true blooded Winglies.

The door was then pushed open, and what followed was not one of the many deckhands but instead the captain himself. His face was a mixture of fear and weariness.

"bad bad news" he said with a strained tone. His ragged breathing suggested he must have made it to their cabin with all haste.

"What?" Rose said, instinctively turning rigid. She had a real bad feeling about this one.

"I can't be one hundred percent, and perhaps my worn eyes are failing me but there is a ship approaching us... a Sandorian ship to be precise."

"A scout!?" Zack said, wanting to know more. But guessing by the look of stricken dread in Paula's eyes, Rose thought it was a hell of a lot more than a single scout ship. Probably a fleet if the captain's shaken appearance was anything to go by.

"Not just any ship... _his _ship!' Paula finally said, the last two words almost a squeal.

"His?" Zack wondered, but Rose already knew who Paula was talking about and thought Zack did as well. All that was needed at this point was confirming.

"The largest and most revered battleship next to the Queen Fury, and it can only belong to one man" Paula said after an effort to calm himself. "The insignias... they are those of the King Eisenhower himself..."

Rose, Zack and Kongol all exchanged glanced.

"How close?" Rose asked.

"Very close. Too close."

"Show us" she said as she began to move towards the deck. All ideas of discretion were abandoned, if Wen was indeed on the ship and it wasn't just another ruse, they had a second chance to end it once and for all. Rose wasn't going to let him go a second time.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

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**Author notes:** I'd like to thank rosedragoon and Sakura's Sonata for their constant reviews. It always gives that bit more motivation so thanks guys

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The Sandorian battleship was truly a sight to behold. It had to be nearly twice the size in both length width and mass. The sea before it rippled aside it, as if no more then peasants moving aside for their king or queen. It was armed with large turrets, the turrets and resting abreast the deck while the cannons were stationed over the side of each level of the boat. Rose guessed there were at least three levels, possibly four. Its towering stature was almost upon them before they could even hope to try and flee, and Rose could spot many soldiers scurrying around the deck, looking somewhat alarmed, at least that's what it looked like. Its large black sails fluttered with the wind, only further imposing its already impressive magnitude. It almost resembled a wayward pirate ship, a bigger version of the ghost ship they encountered on the Queen Fury a while back.

But the vessel suddenly came to a halt, only a few yards away. It bobbed idly, almost threateningly as a kind of standoffish silence began to seep in.

"Now what?" Zack asked as they peered from behind a large container of cargo.

"We wait" she responded coolly, although her hand instinctively dropped towards her sword. More time passed, and even Rose began to question what the hell was going on. As if to beckon the call in her mind, someone left the Sandorian boat by air, and slowly hovered there way down towards their cargo ship, the dazzling blood in the sinking sunset made it impossible for even Rose to verify who or what it was. But that didn't last long, and as soon as Rose could make out who the mysterious flying person was, she drew her blade.

The green robed male descended swiftly, a loud thump echoed as his steel boots impacted the wooden floor, his translucent dragoon like wings fading. One sleeve of his robe flapped freely with the wind, while he used his one and now only hand to wave a courteous greeting.

Rose wasted no time. She darted out from behind the cargo box as fast as she could, dashing towards her enemy with cat like speed. She knew that this would be a rare chance, a rare mistake, and she planned to capitalize on it. When she was only a few meters from her foe, she made a quick sideway slash, aimed at his midsection. But her green opponent was just as quick, and with a silky smooth ease that Rose thought was ungodly, he pulled out the Dragon Buster and intercepted her intended slice, their blades echoing with a screeching clash.

"Long time no see" the blonde haired man greeted, his face smiling with fake sincerity. Rose glowered at him, then pushed her blade forward, causing her adversary to take a step back. Rose then jumped a few feet backwards herself, gaining strategic space between herself and her enemy.

"Wen!" Zack cried angrily as he began to run towards Rose's side. Rose signaled him back without taking her eyes of Wen, her stare analytical and anticipating.

"I come here not to fight; our fight is not to be settled until later. Rather, I come bearing a message, and a trade, a fair one I might add" Wen spoke with complete calmness. Zack noted he had not seen anyone act as calm and collected when facing Rose as Wen did during there short time together. Then again, Wen possessed powers that could potentially outmatch Rose, and with that kind of power who wouldn't be calm?

"I care not for your deals or messengers. Only one thing will transpire, and that is your death. Your arrogance and overconfidence is your downfall, and you coming here alone has mistakenly given me the perfect opportunity to finish you" Rose replied curtly, reading herself for another charge.

When Wen opened his mouth, Rose didn't think he could say anything that could deter her determination to kill him right there and then, let alone stop her in her tracks. Yet the next sentence that was spoken did freeze her, and she felt her resolve begin to diminish.

"We have Dart alive, albeit in our custody. How much longer he lives however, is now in your hands he enlightened. When he saw Rose's stance begin to falter, his arrogant smile began to resurface.

"Good, good. I gave a very strict order that if I do no return alive, then young Dart will suffer an untimely death." Wen took special care as to linger on the death part. Rose felt her blood begin to burn, and she wanted nothing more then to trust her cold blade into his even colder heart. Yet she could feel, more then she could tell that he was not bluffing.

"You want us to hand over the spirits in exchange for Dart's life, correct?" Rose said after a few moments. Wen began to beam, his eyes glowing with excitement.

"You are as sharp as you are beautiful" Wen remarked, bowing slightly.

"Cut it with the fake flattery. Although you may return alive, I can still send you back without a tongue in your mouth." But although she made such threats, Wen knew as well as she did they were empty, and that he once again had them by the proverbial balls.

Wen simply laughed merrily. "I have arranged a meeting spot of us, to make the trade. There you can be assured that Dart is safe, and very much alive. There, you will hand us over the Dragoon Spirits, and we will hand over your last remaining comrade. I'm sure it goes without saying that if you refuse, we will kill him" Wen elaborated, his facing unnervingly upbeat.

Rose didn't say anything, only waited for him to continue. Zack and Kongol by this stage had joined Rose, both weapons drawn. But they had also heard the conversation, and knew as well as Rose did they were stranded if they regarded Dart's life.

"Where shall we meet?" Rose prompted after Wen remained silent, waving his Dragon Buster absently. Wen cocked his head up, his short golden hair moving with the wind.

"There is a small abandoned outpost that lays between Kazas and Hoax, to the north a little" Wen spoke, his face looking thoughtful. He then went into his rope, pulled out a small piece of paper then began to scribble on it with a marker of some sort.

"Here" he spoke after he finished, rolling the piece of paper up and throwing it towards Rose.

"It's a rough indication of where we will meet. Make it midday, the day after the next" he commanded. Rose looked at the parchment, and it was a map of Serdio and between Hoax and Kazas, just as Wen said, he pointed out the area of where they were to meet in the form of a small red circle. Rose then took her eyes off the map and quickly back onto him.

"Well then, I'll see you in three days" he almost chanted. As he turned his back to leave, he quickly pivoted around, surveying the ship. His eyes flickered as they examined, finally resting on Paula.

"You" he signaled, extending his arm and pointer finger. Paula straitened, apparently startled by the sudden attention he received. "Come here" he spoke in a low voice, although he still maintained his dignified smile. Whether it was just a façade he liked to keep up or he found this entire situation pleasing was unknown to her.

Paula cleared his throat, and began to slowly walk towards the king. Rose didn't like where it was going, and although he wore an almost believable smile, she could read something entirely different in his eyes, especially that flash that erupted from his eyes not moments ago. As the captain drew close to her she shot out her hand and jerked him back by the fabric of clothing on his arm.

"Stay right here" she breathed. "At least if you value your life." Paula didn't have to be told twice, and he slowly drifted behind Rose and Zack, fidgeting with himself uneasily.

Wen didn't appear at all shaken by the event, although his smile did wane. And once again Rose noted that dangerous flash that almost makes him look like a madman, although a madman he may very well be. It was a flicker of hatred, contempt and revulsion, the true emotions he harbored behind the fake diplomatic mask upholds up she surmised.

"Well, that's fine" he continued, although his voice hinted vexation. "I'll leave you with one final message." And with that, he dipped his hand into his small sachet and pulled out a handful of black coloured hair locks and held them out over his head, as if it were some sort of trophy.

Rose examined the hair for a few moments, and then she realized exactly just where the hair came from. Zack at first was left confused, not able to recognize the fine hair movements that Rose's keen eye took in that allowed her to distinguish it from others, but his gut told him who it was from.

Wen then slowly released his grip, and the hair fluttered away in small strands with the wind current, and Rose plucks a few locks as it passed her with her free hand.

"I'll see you soon my dear rivals" he almost sneered, and then his Wingly wings manifested. He hovered for a few seconds, eyeing them one last time, before he turn away back to the large battle ship that towered over them.

When he had disappeared from sight, the boat instantly turned and went back the way it came, towards Serdian land, to Kazas no doubt. Everyone, Paula in particular felt a wave of relief at their departure.

Zack examined the large brown hair Rose had in her hand, and then asked weakly "Is that Amika's hair?"

Rose nodded, confirming his earlier suspicion.

"Then… she's dead?" he questioned, the dry frailty not leaving his tone.

"Yes" Rose replied sternly. At that revelation, Zack slammed the butt of his spear against the floorboard below, radiating a loud thumping sound.

"But I did notice one thing. He lost his right hand, perhaps even half of his arm if we are lucky" Rose pointed out. "It would appear that she went down fighting." Zack looked at her, and thought it was completely understandable. Amika being defiant even in the face of death somehow suited her.

Paula then interrupted their conversation.

"I must thank you Rose." He thanked with profuse fondness. "He meant to kill me, didn't he?" he asked after.

"By the look in his yes I'd say yes, he did" she responded bluntly. Paula nodded and thanked her once again. "Anything you need, just tell me" he offered, regretting he could not be more of assistance. Rose shrugged, as if to expect nothing less, then resumed her attention to the map in her other hand.

"Actually, there is one thing you can do for us" Rose informed as she studied the map. Paula's eyebrow shot up, his face lifting. "What is it?"

"I need you to drop us off around this coast" Rose instructed, pointing to the map then showing Paula. The captain nodded as he stared at the area Rose had pointed to. It was a beach area, not too far from Hoax.

"You are to meet Wen at the red marker, right?" the captain recounted. Rose nodded, as if it appeared all too obvious. "Well it's still a fair ways north east of where you want to be dropped off. I can cake you closer if you prefer."

Rose shook her head softly. "I'm not sure if Dart really is alive, but either way I sense a trap. I'd like to walk the distance, to get to know the environment, plan possible escape routes and possible hiding places or ambushes" Rose went on. Paula considered her idea for a moment, and decided it was a wise one and offered no further protest.

"So we got three days to waste off then?" Zack ejected.

"Well, it'll still take at least a day to get to Serdian land. A day and a half if the tide is unfriendly" Paula notified.

"And by there time we to the spot we're to meet Wen and actually prepare, there won't be all that much time left" Rose added soon after. Zack smiled, and then turned to Paula.

"Sounds like we have a plan, so what are you waiting for captain?" Paula tipped his hat, and then ran back into the steering room, yelling to his crew as he went.

When Paula was out of sight, Rose turned towards the front of the ship, which was curved into a V. She leaned her head over the edge, keeping steady by placing her hands on the steel railing that sat aloft. She smelled the salty sea and felt the whipping winds, her hair blowing freely. Zack soon joined her, staring out into the deep blue sea.

"What do you make of this?" Zack asked. Instead of giving her knowledgeable report of the situation though, she turned to him and asked "What do you make of it?" Zack tiled his head thoughtfully.

"I think it's just another devious tactic devised by Wen to attain the spirits. I don't think he plans to leave us alive either." Rose nodded at him, then turned back out towards the endless sea. Zack was about to prompted her to answer his question, and then again realized why she asked him and just how much he had grown, just by being in her presence.

"What ever it is" Rose started, not looking at him. "I need to start treating you as an adult. From now on I need you to take care of yourself, make your own judgments and your own actions based on those judgments" Rose expressed.

"Yeah I know" he responded solemnly. "I don't want to be a liability anymore. I don't want to be babysitted. From now on, you look out for you and I'll look out for me. And when we can, we will each other."

Rose rather admired his maturation, and hoped to the gods above he was ready for the trials ahead. But above that, hoped Zack was ready to be tossed back into the world on his own, like a mother stops feeding a child and leaves him to feed himself.

The next day was spent in the same fashion the others had been on the boat. The tides were a little rough, but they were still able to make it on land in relative short time. The cargo ship pulled up on the beach, and Zack had much pleasure laughing when the crew was too busy arguing about when to brake and they left it too late, causing the large ship to crash against the sand loudly. Paula reprimanded them both thoroughly, and the entire crew had to manually wedge the ship off the sand and back into the water.

"Sorry about that" Paula apologized embarrassed. Rose didn't say anything, but Zack waved it off, snickering as he heard the same two crewmen argue again about who messed up.

"Dammit, if I hear one more word out of the two of you you'll both be left here, stranded on this bay!' Paula cried angrily. They both gulped, and remained silent.

"Well, I best get this cargo run back to Fletz" Paula said a little sadly.

"Will you be alright?' Zack asked. The captain smiled and nodded. "They don't call me the great captain for nothing!" he exclaimed. _They call you the great captain? _Zack mimed to himself a little skeptic.

"I wish you luck on your adventures" Paula spoke, saluting them. Zack waved and the captain began towards the ladder that was used to shuffle them and his crew off the boat safely. "I'll have none of you're heroic antics of jumping" he had said. "Nope, last thing we need is one of you to sustain a broken leg."

The trio remained on the beach until the boat began to drip out of sight. Rose then pulled out the map and examined it once again. They all then took off into the direction the map indicated, walking at a brisk pace.

As Rose went, she carefully examined her surroundings, looking for anything that would be worth noting. On this occasion, Zack was doing the same, remaining relatively quiet. Remembering what Rose had told him on the boat, he decided he'd start by mapping out his own environmental landmarks of interest. Rose had stated on many occasions that the difference between winning and losing can easily come down to how well you know the surrounding environment. Knowing was always a key factor in winning. And so the three set off, towards their latest, and hopefully final encounter with Wen.

* * *

On the Sandorian battleship, Wen returned to his private quarters. The small room that housed nothing more then a desk and a few draws remained quiet until a small knocked sounded at the door.

"Come in" he hummed. The door opened, and a blonde figure approached. It was the same one who Wen had been talking to in the Evergreen Forest.

"Are the preparations complete? He asked. Wen nodded. "They'll be there, in three days as you instructed. The blonde man nodded, tracing his hand over his red bandanna.

"So you're really going to reveal your identity eh?" Wen commented slyly.

"They won't live much longer, hopefully not even long enough to comprehend what that revelation will be" he answered coldly.

"I know you don't need to be told this, but don't underestimate her. She did you in last time remember?" Dart looked at him narrowly, as if he was about to hit the man who had just uttered those apparently offending words.

"I suggest you watch your tongue, and I am fully aware of what she is capable of. Just make sure you keep the plan intact" the young red clothed man spat.

"My apologies, I didn't mean it to be disrespectful, only diligent" Wen defended. Dart still glared at him with a look of resentment.

"To them I am still the defenseless imprisoned Dart, and that's how it must stay. When you take me out to them, make sure they suspect nothing" he reminded with a certain edge in his voice.

"Don't worry Dart, everything will work out fine." Wen replied with a smile. Or should I call you, Melbu Frahma?"


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27**

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**Author notes:** I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a happy new year :)

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Rose, Zack and Kongol made their way through the large green plains of Serdio, and into the distance they could see remnants of what Rose supposed was the old outpost Wen was talking about. She looked about once more, and once more mentally noted nothing of interest. They were surrounded in wide open greenery, grass and the odd tree and fern. To the distant east was the forestry swamp that broke off into Hoax and Volcano Villude. He certainly picked his spot well. There were no visible places to set any traps or ambushes, and perhaps more importantly made it almost impossible to run, escape or hide. Yes, he definitely picked this spot for a very specific purpose, and the more she thought about it, the less she liked.

Upon closer inspection, the outpost, or was once and outpost, lies in ruin. It looked to be made of bricks and cement, but most of the structures had only the base remaining, the rest charred with a deep black that hinted a great inferno. It was only a very small outpost, and a square brick walls surrounded the perimeter, save for the many holes and cracks that it sustained. There were also two just standing perpendicular watch towers on either end of the compound, although it looked ragged and a lot of the bricks were cracked and smashed. It would still serve as a fine way to spot Wen's presence before he came however. In the center there was a main building that went under ground, the above ground part of it remains decimated.

"We'll set up there" she spoke, pointing to the cellar, visible by the large holes and complete absence of infrastructure around the underground entrance. Rose once again scanned her eyes around the other almost non existent buildings and felt rather nostalgic, the bits of ash and char reminding her of the destruction of Neet.

Rose looked up into the sky and saw the Sun beaming down on them high up in the sky surrounded by grayish clouds. She guessed it was around midday, and Wen and his forces wouldn't be too much longer. She wasn't surprised he decided the meeting to happen during the day, the night would be far too concealing for his liking. Kongol and Zack began towards the cellar in front of her, leaving her to her thoughts.

"Kongol" she called when he was a few steps in front of her. Her turned around and regarded her, his eyes locking with hers. Zack turned around too, his curiosity rising.

"I want you to do something for me. You probably won't like it, but I feel it needs to be done." Kongol didn't respond verbally, only gave her his silent acknowledge.

"I want you to leave here, and head towards Hoax. It is there that I plan to rendezvous after the encounter with Wen. My intuition tells me that this is some sort of ploy, and I don't think it would be a good idea for all of us to be here, where if something does go wrong, he will be able to attain the remaining spirits. Even if he does intend a trade, we can give him ours if we must, knowing that you still have the final one that we can protect from him."

Kongol's eyes darkened in disapproval.

"I know, but if we do not return, I need you to go into hiding, and make sure he does not get your spirit." Rose finished. Kongol and Rose locked a silent stare, and neither flinched. After a few minutes, Kongol nodded solemnly, although he still looked unhappy with the arrangement.

"Thank you" Rose thanked. Wait three days and no longer. The near by towns will be Wen's primary targets should he choose to hunt you down."

Kongol once again nodded, but his face lightened a little. "Rose not die. We will meet again" he spoke, his eyes gleaming. Rose half smirked, and gave him a pat on his broad shoulder. Kongol turned away westward towards Hoax, his loud feet thumping like the hooves of horses.

"Was that really wise?" Zack finally asked when he had gained enough distance way from them that he was not in plain earshot, but close enough to call back should Rose change her mind.

"I think so. If we're going to fall, we won't make it easy for him."

Zack thought to protest the idea, thinking we may need all the help we can get, but trusted Rose's judgment. It would be pointless anyway, once Rose made up her mind, it was usually never reversed, at least not in his experience.

"Also" Zack began, changing the subject. "Something else bugged me back on the ship. Why didn't Wen just crush us with the crew he had on his ship. He would easily out number us, and in the confined space, it wouldn't take much effort to overwhelm."

"Obvious really. He was worried we'd in a last desperate act of defiance throw the spirits off the deck and into the depth of the unknown sea below. Caught with the water current, it's highly unlikely he'd find them again. He isn't stupid, and he didn't want to compromise the capture of the Dragoon Spirits"

Zack agreed, although at least at the time he wouldn't have thought about doing something like that, although he was sure Rose surely would, hence the reason he didn't assault them. Yet out here, on the endless green plains of Serdio, we would have no such option. He really has picked his spot well.

"It's time we prepare. When you're finished, we will wait atop of each guard tower to try and sight them early." Rose forwarded. Zack didn't reply, only suddenly felt taken aback. His senses felt suddenly heightened, as if he could feel every small breeze and every ray of sun that pressed against his body. He often felt like this before serious confrontations, as if his own body readied with anticipation.

Rose gave him a sideways glance when he didn't respond, watching him as his stared off into the distance. His face seemed far away, as if he was not in this time or when. She was about to shake him out of his trance, but he came around, nodded slowly.

Rose thought to ask him if he was okay, but considered it may be his way with dealing with serious confrontations like these. She had seen him have these moments before, and thought it better that he entirely comprehend the situation and all it meant, rather then go in ignorant and reckless.

"Let's go" she prompted, and the two walked into the cellar, to prepare for the conflict ahead.

A couple of hours after the small preparation they could do, which entailed a bit of sleep and discussions of possible future developments of their confrontation ahead, they each went to their respective posts on each guard tower. Upon climbing the rickety ladder that led to the apex of the tower, Zack noticed the deterioration in the wooden slates that appeared to gold the cement and brick in place. The rotting almost looked like it chewed through the wood entirely, as if termites had made residence, or at least once had. He felt his stomach tighten, worried that as insignificant as his weight was in comparison to the tower, it may be just enough to tilt the fine balance and crush the wooden floorboard the created the top room and send him crashing to the hard grass below. Once he was in the tower, he was relieved to find it still retained some of his sturdiness, and decidedly trusted the decayed tower. He turned southward and could see Rose standing in her tower, folding her arms and looking with a look of what he assumed to be expectancy. They were out of earshot, but body signals were very much visible.

"Kinda stake out like" Zack mused to himself as he looked forward, spotting nothing more then green fields, blue sky and a beaming sun the was nearing the lining of the horizon. As they waited, Zack began to wonder if Rose was right about him appearing during day time. He had said midday, but it was evident that he either wanted them early or he was late. They had been here since midday, and still no sign of him. His mind began to wonder if he only wanted us here so he and his forces could assault them during the night, where they were blind, outnumbered and out powered. He began to think that this may all be another ruse set up, and they were falling right into it.

Zack's worried were soon laid to rest when he spotted movement in the distances in front of him. It was approaching fast, too fast for foot so he supposed they were on horseback. His eyes weren't as keen as Rose's, but he could make out they were only in small contingent, not in a large forces as Zack had predicted. When Rose glances at him, he gave her the signal that Wen had been spotted. She descended her own watchtower immediately and walked over to his, quickly climbing the ladder to meet Zack.

"That would be our guest" Zack motioned as he pointed to the small group, now becoming more visible. Rose focused her vision on the approaching riders, and she began to count.

"I count seven guards, Wen and Dart himself" she announced a few moments later. By now Zack should have come to expect this, he had witnessed Rose's hawk like vision before on more then one occasion, but it never ceased to amaze him how pin point accurate she could be.

He absently brushed his hand through his black hair, his nerves beginning to get the best of him.

"So game plan?" he asked. Rose gave it some thought, then shrugged.

"With a small group like that, he may be really planning to make a trade, which makes me feel all the better about sending Kongol off. So even if we make the trade with two spirits, we can rest easy knowing one is still in our grasp" she said.

"But is he really planning to make this sort of trade? Part of me tells me he isn't going to simply hand over Dart, his main leverage, only for two Dragoon Spirits. More likely then not, he'll figure out we sent Kongol off" Zack replied. "I still don't think he plans to leave us here anything but dead. We're too much of a threat, especially you."

"I agree. So we'll play oblivious until necessary. Until we can find an opening" Rose concluded, and now Wen and his platoon were beginning to approach them.

"Well, let's go out and meet our 'guests'" Rose suggested, moving herself towards the ladder. They both climbed down the shaky ladder, and the urge of uneasiness that the ladder will crumble once again filled Zack's mind. But again it showed its durability and remained intact.

They walked northward a little from the tower, resting a few meters from the collapsed wall that surrounded the outside. They looked further away on ground level then they did in the tower, but it still would be only a matter of minutes before they would arrive.

"Watch them closely. Observation will be the key. If you suspect anything, don't be afraid to act" Rose encouraged to Zack. Zack nodded, offering a wan smile I return.

"And so it begins. It's too bad it's not just our lives at stake here" Zack replied a little anxiously.

"It never was. If he has his way, many more will die" Rose replied coolly, as if this sort of thing was an everyday event. Zack hadn't really thought of it that way and soon wished Rose hadn't pointed that fact out, although he wouldn't have too much time to linger on Rose's statement. Before he could, Wen and his group approached in visible sight, their horses running at rapid speeds to close the distance. Zack griped his pole arm fiercely, ready to strike should such a situation warranted it. And Zack had an idea this one would.

"Well, looks like you did make it after all" Wen greed as his horse came to a sudden stop in front of them. He looked at his men and nodded, and in a swift fluid motion they all dismounted, except for the one holding Dart, who was seemingly unconscious. Another soldier, some were Wingly hybrids Rose noticed, others were human, approached Dart and took him off the Horse, none too carefully though. They rested him on his knees while four soldiers held his lifeless body upright, his once straight hair now messy and plastered over his face. The four soldiers then pulled out a knife each and held it against the four sides of his throat, resting it on the tip of his skin.

"This is just an added precaution, to make sure you behave, if you will" Wen spoke, his arrogant smile surfacing as it always did when he thought he had control of a situation. _They didn't even change his clothes _Rose thought vaguely. His red armor, although looking dull still shined as the sun reflected its radiating crimson.

He looked at the two, then his wondered behind them, as if searching for something. "Where is the third one, the Giganto?" Wen probed after he couldn't find what he was looking for, which was apparently Kongol.

Before Rose could answer, Zack decided he would contribute a bit of his witticism.

"Not too sure. We must have lost him on the walk over here. This grass is pretty long." He paused, and then quickly glanced at the green grass around them. "Who knows, perhaps he decided he'd give it a bit of a cut with his axe?"

Wen's features darkened, hinting rage. He didn't appear all too entertained by his jokes.

"Wherever you're hiding him I demand you call him into this equation" Wen spat venomously. "We don't want things to get… messy do we? Not when we have only just began our meeting" he added with an afterthought, sounding more composed and relaxed.

Zack couldn't help but smirk impishly, feeling another reply comes to his lips.

"Kongol, here boy!" he called, his voice full of mockery. "If don't come out, we'll make the big bad King Eisenhower angry." Zack halted, looked thoughtful then shrugged. "Well, I tried. Guess we lost him."

Rose thought to signal a stop to his scornful behavior, lest they wanted a furious Wen. Although under other circumstances she wouldn't mind, he had a certain hostage under his jurisdiction now. The last thing they would want would be to upset him. When he did, he hinted aggressive, almost unstable behavior. But to Rose's surprise, Wen didn't anger, only laughed merrily which put Rose more on guard.

"My my, you're still the cheeky one aren't you?" His smile dissolved in an instant and what replaced it was a look of cold hard vexation, verging on hatred. "If you want to keep it up, there will be more then one fatality" he announced with a callous tone that made Zack recoil a little. He cursed himself when he did. Wen must have noticed it too he guessed, as a smile slowly resurfaced. "Good, now that I have set down some ground rules; let's get to business shall we?"

"You can threaten all you like, the fact is we only have two of the Dragoon Spirits present" Zack retorted, all his previous humor now absent from his tone. Rose still remained silent, rather impressed at how he for once took the driver seat.

Wen sighed deeply, then looked at him. "You know" the blonde man began. "You would have done well working under me."

Zack screwed his face up in revulsion. "I did work under you, I trusted you, and look what happened? I get backstabbed, finding out I was nothing more then a mechanical cog in your schemes" Zack defended furiously. Deep emotions began to swell again, and Rose hoped he could keep them under control and not do something stupid.

"Perhaps so, but you were still a subordinate that I took under my wing and raised. You were still a boy who I took as my own, in hopes that when the day would come you would show your loyalty despite the circumstances. Yet you now serve this monster over me" Wen rebuke.

"Monster? You're the only monster here, using us all and killing countless in the name of power" he fought.

"And the person you align yourself now is any different? She, a monster who slaughtered countless to stop the birth of a god?"

Zack looked at him confused and irritated. "What are you talking about?"

Although Zack had no idea where this was headed, Rose did. And she had to stop it, for if he were to find out now of all possible times, it would become disastrous.

"Zack let me handle it" she replied coolly, although she felt far from cool. "Let's get back to the matter at hand."

A daunting realization hit Wen, and a large evil smile crept upon his lips. "You don't know who she really is, do you boy?" Zack looked at him perplexed, but said nothing.

"The Black Monster, the one who destroyed your family one home, the one you swore vengeance on is right beside you Zack" he pointed out with great pleasure. His eyes began to gleam at the prospect of their possible, and the all too likely chance that the duo will tear apart at this new revelation.

Zack laughed in disbelief. "You'll do anything to gain the upper hand won't you? There is no end to your lies and deceits." Wen only smiled.

"Why don't you ask her?" he proposed. Rose shifted her feet uneasily. Zack turned and faced her, his face looking for reassurance.

"Fine, let's play it your way then. Rose, please be so kind to tell him that you're not the Black Monster" Zack spoke with a confidence Wen would be all to glad to see shatter.

Rose didn't respond, only cast her eyes downwards, looking at the grass below her. Zack's facial features turned to that of alarm, and for the first time noticeable doubt and uncertainty seeped into his tone.

"Rose… Tell me he is lying" he asked, although it sounded more like an demand.

"We can talk about this later Zack, we have other matters we have to worry about" Rose tried to deflect. But it wouldn't be that easy, of course it wouldn't be that easy. And it had to happen now out of all possible times.

"No, I think now is a perfect time to talk about it Rose." Apprehension and slight anger also invaded his pitch. "Are you or are you not the Black Monster?" Wen, who now appeared almost forgotten, speculated the chain of events that he created with great interest. _Perhaps there is a chance to save the boy yet _he thought to himself wistfully. In all fairness, he too had grown attached to the boy and was both disappointed and almost mournful to see his departure.

"…Yes, I was" she replied reluctantly, feeling not only one situation slip from her fingers but now two. He recoiled in what could only by described as flabbergast. That look then dissolved into that of great rage and hurt.

"You're… you're no better then Wen is! You lied to me as well so then all this time I was… no, no!" he cried defiantly.

"Zack get a hold of yourself!" Rose cried sharply. "What's done is done, we can worry about it later, but now we have a much larger problem then your vengeance. We have to consider the others who will be affected by what we do as well" she tried to reason, but she could see it fell on deaf ears. Once again exploding emotions clouded all good judgment and his body became enveloped in embers, and before she knew it she was a Dragoon, although now an unstable one. He took flight at once, and flew east towards Hoax and the marshlands.

_Damn it! _She cussed as she watched him fly away. Wen also took this time to transform, wasting no time. When the drafts of winds vanished, he was the Green Dragoon, lord of the lashing winds again. He glanced at her briefly, before he too took the skies in direct pursuit of Zack. She began to transform herself, her body bathing in the darkness that made her what she was. Once transformed, she began to ascend into the air until a very important matter struck her, a matter which she had momentarily forgotten amongst all the tension. _Dart._

She looked over at him, who was not only a few feet away. Although the guards nervously surrounded him, without Wen they would not be too much hassle to remove. But if she did take that course of action and free Dart, then Zack would be left to fend against Wen all on his own, which would be a difficult task with a level head, but an all but impossible one for one who was in a unbalanced state of mind. The chances are they if she waited much longer, he'd be long dead before she could catch up to them. She cursed again, finding herself on one of the rare cross roads in her life, and not knowing which one to take. She had to choose one though, and if she didn't soon enough she wouldn't be able to save either.

For what seemed like an eternity she juggled the two options in her mind. Save Dart, which was her primary reason for coming out here (although unknown to her, it wasn't really Dart at all) or Save Zack, her new companion who was likely to face certain death. She tossed the two ideas around a little longer, before she let out a mental sigh and came to a conclusion. She looked at Dart longingly, and muttered "I'll get you back, I swear it" and then took off into the direction Wen had left, attempting to save the person she had so carelessly hurt.


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

Zack flew east, not knowing exactly where he was head, or not really caring. All he wanted at that moment was to get away, away from everything. Away from Wen, away from Rose, away from reality. He wanted to go back to his peaceful life in Fletz, where a hard day entailed nothing more then a run in with a stray monster or two in the Barrens. Amongst all his furious contempt and self pity, Zack failed to detect another presence approach. Hard drafts of wind send his body to the ground like a puppet, and he was powerless to stop it. Try as he might, he was stood before the powerful gales no more then a fly would stand before a tornado. With a loud thump, his body crashed into the long grass below. Zack tried desperately to regain his balance, but the second presence was already upon him, his eyes leering with a fixated concentration, his Dragon Buster raised to Zack's chest.

"Would do you no good to struggle, you'll only hurt yourself" Wen warned, although the arrogant smile Zack expected to see didn't surface. His face remained stoic and unmoving, almost like a statue. Zack sneered at him, his face full of rage and part anguish. 

"I'll give you one last chance to reconsider, now that all players have been unveiled and all intentions identified." Wen paused for a moment, and then continued. "Join my cause, like how things were and should have been. Hand over the Spirit as well as your loyalty, and I'll see to it that you no longer have to worry about these stupid agenda's that Rose has put in your head. Zack, I know you, this is not who you are. You're not a thinker, not an organizer or an activist." Wen once again halted his words, almost as if to give them time to sink in. "You are better suited with me, who can tell you what to do and think for you. You are much more proficient at simple things."

When he finished, Zack didn't feel offended at his statement of telling him he was simplistic. He knew he was, and Wen wasn't attacking his intellect, just stating… well… truth he supposed. Wen had a sort of calm serenity in his voice, his facial expression almost wistful. For one fleeting moment, Zack felt an urge to accept, to throw everything away and live back into the oblivious life he had before he had any idea what Wen had really planned. He mentally slapped himself. _Get a hold of yourself, remember who it really is that stands before you _his mind cried out to him. He was successful, and was able to shake off such ludicrous thoughts. Zack then truly began to realize what a persuasive mastermind he was. His ability to reach out and create personal illusions of security was remarkable. He knew how to weaken someone and then prey on they own doubts and fears. Even if Rose was the monster he had always hated, she had taught him one thing: To be strong, even if you have to feign it to your enemies. If you hesitate or show outward weakness, then you are almost certainly doomed, especially if such an adversary is the likes of Wen.

"No" Zack spat with a certain defiance. Wen's face once again transgressed into rage, and then back into melancholy.

"It's such a shame to waste good potential" Wen mused, and then Zack spotted the slightest movement in the shoulder that held the Dragon Buster. Rose's training had saved his life, because in that instant Zack was able to move his body down, down enough so Wen would just miss his intended target.

The Dragon Buster sliced through his armor like a knife though butter, just as Rose had said. It pierced right below his shoulder, and had Zack not the awareness to anticipate and move, it would have surely struck his heart.

Rose witnessed all this from above, and for a moment mentally praised Zack for his evasion. But, if she did not intervene, the next strike would surely be fatal. She wasted no time.

Zack cried in agony as for the second time he felt the sizzling impact of the Buster against his skin. The searing pain was immense, and it felt like his entire arm was on fire. Wen withdrew the sword and Zack felt his body go limp, the corner of his vision beginning to darken as blood spilled freely from the wound.

Before Wen could inflict further damage, he felt the gathering of energy near by, and whipped around to see Rose, her blade facing the ground with small drops of dark oozing liquid beginning to form from the top.

"And now your fate is sealed" Rose spoke coldly, as she prepared to cast one of her most powerful spells, Demon Gate.

"I wouldn't recommend it" Wen spoke in an eerily calm voice. "Wouldn't want to cause any harm to our injured friend over here would we?" Rose let out a small string of profanities, then cancelled the spell. Zack's form began to envelop in a blinding light, and as it faded he was restored to his usual state. A red orb floated aloft for a few seconds, before it fell on Zack's heaving chest.

Rose's eyes widened in realization and terror as Wen's smile broadened, reaching his hand out to clasp the Dragoon Spirit that it's host could no longer defend. Rose tried to intercept, but she was too far away. Wen grabbed the spirit, and flew back a few feet, creating a safety zone between him and Rose.

"Well, I may have hoped for three Spirits, but given the circumstances; I think one shall suffice for now" Wen spoke with typical smugness. Rose readied herself to try and take back what was lost, but Wen held up his hand for what Rose interpreted to be a signaling halt.

"I may not have hit any of Zack's vital organs, but rest assured should you not get him to a medical facility soon, he will die of blood loss. I suggest you spend less time worrying about me and more about your fallen comrade."

Rose glanced over at Zack beside her, who's eyes were glazed over, his breaths huffed and irregular.

"This Dragon Buster is not like any other sword as I'm sure you're aware. It does particular damage to Dragons and their counter parts, the Dragoons. But I am not all without sympathy." Wen took a few steps backwards. "If you leave now, I shall not hinder you. I shall let you heal up, and you shall hear from me later." An almost genuine smile crossed his lips. "I'm not _all _bad after all" he spoke, almost chuckling.

Rose walked over to Zack, blood now tracing out of the corner of his mouth. She lifted him up, like a mother carried a baby, supporting his back and neck with one hand and the other kept him aloft by curling around the backs of his knees.

She turned to Wen, her eyes narrow. "I'll be taking that back soon" she breathed in a low voice that was so full of venom even Wen felt it. "So keep it, look after it. That'll be the first thing I extract from your dead carcass." To Rose, it was a pledge out loud, and her victim would be the witness. Wen felt a chill run from the base of his neck all the way down to the bottom of his spine. For an instant, a brief instant, he thought he felt trepidation, fear, terror. Rose locked eyes with him, her gaze cold, hard and at the same time on fire. Wen didn't look away, didn't dare shift his gaze although that was what he wanted to do more then anything at that moment. Finally, she broke the staring contest and took flight.

"You know" Wen started, taking a few steps back of his own. "I could have sworn I saw the Black Monster again." Rose didn't turn to face him, but still responded.

"And it is that monster that will be the last image that you will see, the image you will take with you on your way to the afterlife." Wen nodded, as if the threat of his death was an arrangement that he accepted.

"If so, I'll be happy knowing that as wicked as I am, between all the lies and deceits I have spread and all the murders I've commented, they still do not even closely scale up to the evils and atrocities you have carried out" Wen expressed, his voice stern and completely serious. "There will be a special place in hell reserved for the truly evil, the utter wicked and malevolent; a place that even the likes of me can't fill. I can take condolence that that place has your name on it." Wen left her with those words and fled towards Kazas, back to his throne. And as much to Rose's dismay and irritation, those words would circle her mind for days to come.

Zack didn't remember much after Rose lifted him off from the ground. He remembered her and Wen exchanging words, but he couldn't understand them. They sounded like a distant droning, and anything he tried to recollect after that came to him as foggy and scattered, until his mind came to a blank spot where he assumed he lost consciousness. He raced through his thoughts for several minutes before he finally opened his eyes, although they were met with a dim light, yet as dim as it was the light forced his eyes back shut. He tried again to open them, trying to adjust his eyes to the light, and this time gained some degree of success. His eyes were bleary at first, but they slowly became began to atone and his vision slowly restored. He moved his head around to gain some sort of idea of his surroundings. He was lying on a bed, his chest bare save for the white bandages that were strapped across his injured left shoulder (That weren't so white on a closer inspection. Remnants of blood loss stained his bandage) and he was lying on a small bed that was situated against a large white wall. The rest of the room was small and bare, save for a few pictures and bits of machinery that looked like ex-rays.

_I'm in a hospital room _Zack surmised. It wasn't really the richest one, rather a rather basic ward that was one of three identical rooms from what he could see. But he was thankful he wasn't dead. He tried to sit up, expecting serious pain to flare from his wound, but was surprised to find only a small ache radiated from his wound. Sitting up, he took a look around, and his head began to feel light.

_Have I been drugged up? _Zack thought as his body began to fall towards the bed, landing with a thud. This time, pain did flare from his shoulder, and it took considerable willpower not to scream. Instead he opted to cry into the pillow that was formerly resting under his head. When the pain subsided, he grabbed the sheets from under him and wrapped himself up in it, deciding he would succumb to the temptation of blissful sleep.

Zack never really completely drifted off to sleep, but he wasn't wake either. His mind wondered somewhere in between. For a time he didn't know, his sifted through various thoughts, memories and idea's although all circling around the same problem. _Rose is the Black Monster._

As if on queue, Zack's reverie was interrupted by soft footsteps, and after focusing his ears he knew who they were from. On a sudden impulse he chose to feign sleep. It wasn't that he was afraid to face her, he knew that much. But for some reason, he felt like it was the right thing to do. He heard the person lean against the wall opposite his bead, but more then that he could feel her regard. Nothing was spoken, and he fell decidedly tense, his mind racing. Awkward was what he felt, awkward to the very core. Silence fell the room save for the voices outside the medical facility, although those voices were the last thing on his mind. Then a voice cut through his furious thinking, stopping them instantly.

"I know you're awake" she spoke softly. Zack sighed, opened his eyes then turned his head towards her, although he didn't make direct eye contact.

"How'd you know?" he asked back with equal somberness.

"I knew immediately by the different patterns of you breathing cycle. While you slept they were long and drawn out, now they were quick, quiet and rapid. It was obvious you were trying to hide. And I heard a thump here not long ago, although I chose not to intrude. Zack cursed himself for not being more careful.

"You really do analyze things" he replied. Rose shrugged.

"It's what I do. Always have. It comes as a second nature." Zack didn't reply, only nodded his head slightly.

"How are you feeling?" she asked him. Zack decided he couldn't keep putting off this confrontation, and it's best to get it done now while he has a level head and is in no condition to try anything stupid.

"So you're the Black Monster after all" he spoke out, ignoring Rose's question. Rose felt her body tense, and she didn't reply to his question right away.

"I was the Black Monster. Dart made sure to kill that side of me" she replied almost nervously, although she hoped she didn't sound it. But even as she made that statement, after the way she acted to Wen, she wondered if the monster in her was really dead after all.

"But you still killed my parents, amongst many others I'd assume" Zack replied firmly. Rose stared at him, knowing not quite what to say. Zack threw the white sheets off him and sat up. She dipped her eyes southward, not wanting to look into his surely disdainful eyes. Only, his eyes weren't disdainful.

"Look at me Rose" he spoke softly. She did, slowly tilting her head, her gaze meeting his. He saw sorrow, regret and anxiety, among other things surfacing in her usually cold and contained blue eyes. The words Wen spoke before his departure danced around her mind one again.

"I'm sorry" she muttered and once again cast her eyes to the floor. "If you want to kill me, I understand" Rose spoke, remembering making the exact same proposition to Dart. Zack sighed deeply, almost comically.

"Rose, I'm not going to kill you. That's being just a tiny bit dramatic" he replied, and Rose felt relief sweep through her. "I admit, there's apart of me that hates you now, hates what you were and did. But, as you stated before, and I really want to believe, that that part of you is long dead, that in a way Dart truly did slay that demon in you."

Rose nodded, but said nothing. Zack reached out his hand, his injured shoulder, and lifted her chin up to meet his gaze again, wincing slightly more in discomfort then pain as his shoulder jerked.

_Her eyes, god her eyes_ he had thought. They still expressed great regret and sorrow, and Zack acted on another impulse he didn't even think about, and wrapped both his arms around her, pulling her head into his chest as if to nurture her. She fell freely into him, offering not so much as a whimper of resistance. He cradled her into his chest, his nose picking up the sent of her hair and the flower that lay beside it. It smelled breathtaking, and Rose could feel for the first time in what felt like millennia a tear crystallize in the corner of her eye, yet refused to let it fall. This was enough. This signified, and they both knew it that Zack had forgiven her, and had accepted wholeheartedly who and what she was. It may have even perhaps meant that Rose had accepted Zack as well. _God Rose, a moment ago I hated you, and now I can't help but fall for you all over again. Only you can do I, although god knows how or why _he thought.

And there they both laid, in each others arms, no words spoken. It called upon emotions she hadn't felt in eleven thousand years, emotions that only Zeig had sparked. She then admonished herself for making the constant comparison between the two, they were both different people and it wasn't fair to constantly draw such analogies. But it had been so long since she had let another person, much less a male such as him touch her and hold her in such a way. No one had since Zeig, and for that reason she forgave her self a little for the comparisons.

Slowly, Rose broke the embrace, standing up once again. They locked eyes again, and Zack looked on the verge of an outburst, his emotions stirred up as much as hers was. With great difficulty, he contained himself.

"Rose.. I.." he stopped mid sentence, apparently hesitant to continue. He decided he wouldn't finish what he wanted to say, but had a fine substitute, at least for now.

"You're still the Rosie I know" he finally finished with a smile that made her feel like she could suddenly melt. And before she knew it, she was smiling as well. A true smile, a smile that lit up her face and made her look like she couldn't possible be the person she was. It made her look sweet, innocent and almost naïve. _A direct contrast of all that she is _he thought.

But their moment came to a sudden halt as Kongol came sauntering through the door, effectively ending their somewhat romantic situation. The door slammed open, and Kongol's massive frame lowered itself in, having to duck his head at the entrance door. She moved away from Zack a fraction, and while many assume a Giganto such as him to be too be dull to detect subtle movies like that, he very much did. Rose could notice it in the slight change of face and his eyes.

"What is it?" Rose asked, a little shaky. She hoped he wouldn't notice this either, but again thought he did. He moved to the side of the doorway and a much smaller by comparison male entered in a white lab coat of sorts. He looked older, had gray wavy hair and a small moustache. He wore thick spectacles and his leathery face squinted as he approached Zack's bed, examining him closely. Rose took this time to silently get her roaring emotions under control.

'How are you feeling?" he asked. His voice was not what you would expect from such an owner. By the look of him you would expect a quivery, almost raspy tone. But his voice was composed and steady.

"My shoulder is pretty sore, but other than that I'm fine" he answered. The doctor nodded. "That may change once the drugs wear off, but lucky your injury just missed your heart. Disinfectant and stitches is all I could do. Just make sure you keep pressure off it" the doctor informed. "I'll give you another dose of painkillers and then I must go, for I have other patients to attend to. If you need anything else, just call me." After the doctor went through the process of sterilizing the syringe and checking for any potential air bubbles, he injected it into Zack's shoulder. He winced in pain, but the injection was quick. After that was done the doctor bid them farewell and disappeared into the room nextdoor.

"Where am I?" Zack asked suddenly after the realization of not knowing where this medical facility was dawned on him.

"Hoax" Rose replied. Zack nodded absently. He really didn't feel like himself come to think of it, his head still felt light and his thoughts were askew and scattered. He began to have trouble focusing.

"So did you defeat Wen?" Zack asked, his voice far away. His eyes looked like glass, and his pupils dilated.

"No, he fled. He acquired your Dragoon Spirit though" Rose informed the groggy Zack.

"Oh" Wen replied. He couldn't concentrate and his head was swimming with incoherent thoughts. "Sorry" he muttered, and he fell back into his bed. "You know, se should just forget all this and retire somewhere, away from all this" Zack blurted out, flinging his good arm as he spoke. His voice sounded slurred at this stage. "Live in my place, we can have lots of tea and..." he paused, his face turning to that of thoughtfulness. "We can run in the rain!" Zack shouted, his voice hinting triumph. "It rain's a lot in Fletz you know." Zack continued to rant on, not staying on one topic for too long. Rose gave Kongol a look of concern, knowing he was no way acting himself.

"It's just slight delirium. It's a side affect of the painkiller's I gave him" the doctor's voice rung from behind them. He was holding a clipboard, eyeing his delirious patient. "It may be best you leave and let him rest for a while. I'll call you when he is fit to have visitors" the doctor ordered as he left for another room. Rose looked at Kongol who just shrugged, and they both left him, hearing his protesting moans as they departed.

A few hours later Zack awoke, but although his delirium and hallucinations had passed, his condition hadn't really improved. He was in serious pain, and when Rose did see him his face was in his pillow, moaning agonizingly. The doctor took a second look and confirmed it wasn't infected. The pain he was in was natural given the injury, which severed several nerves in his shoulder and chest.

"I can put him back on the painkillers" the doctor proposed. Rose looked at him doubtfully, and then nodded. The doctor did just that, getting a syringe and injecting it into his arm after testing for air bubbles, following the same procedure he had last time. After a few minutes, his cries of pain dyed down and he dropped off into a murmuring slumber.

"His cut isn't any ordinary one. From a glance you'd say it's from a blade, but after inspecting the damage it left in its wake, I'd say it wasn't." The doctor looked at his clipboard. "The nerves and tissue that were damaged were not punctured or serrated. That's usually the result of a flesh wound from a sharp object. His nerves and tissue were burned, almost as if he was penetrated by a hot poker."

"It wasn't just any ordinary sword" Rose admitted.

"I thought as much. But the damage it did was irreplaceable. Usually the nerve damage that is done can be fixed or will regenerate on its own, such is the body's way. But, the way his nerves and tissue are burnt, it leaves no way for regeneration whatsoever, natural or superficial. We haven't the technology to replace such body parts, so…" the doctor trailed off.

"What?" Rose asked sharply, concern beginning to kindle deep in her stomach.

"He may lose some mobility in his shoulder, if not all of it." Rose's heart sank at hearing the news, but her face remained stoic. "All we can do is wait" the physician said, and he continued his daily errands. Rose looked over at a sleeping Zack, and felt guilt rear its ugly head once again. After all, had it not been her fault to begin with?


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29**

The road to recovery for Zack was far from an easy one. The doctor treated his injury like a break, and after a few days he got him to complete daily routines of physical theory on his arm. When Rose asked if it was necessary, the doctor replied "If he does not use his arm regularly, the muscles there will begin to deteriorate."

The good news was that at this point he also abolished the idea of Zack never being able to move his arm. He still had trouble moving it, and couldn't make any quick movements with it, at least not at this point. Every time he accidentally reached for something too fast or even just spun around would result in Zack grimacing in pain.

Rose observed all this of course from… Well… being there for once. This occasion she didn't sit in the shadows and watch as things unfolded, she was apart of it. Part of it was definitely guilt, but she knew a larger part was just that she liked his company. More then being alone it seems. This was a notion she now openly admitted to herself, and that notion in itself both dismayed and pleased her at the same time. She liked being with him a lot.

Zack still held his good sense of humor, which was at times a godsend and at others a scourge. Zack could still get on her nerves, and when he did she would often stride out before she would say something cold and harsh. Zack was probably used to it by now, but after all that's happened to him she wanted to refrain from it at least for the moment.

Zack too had apparently noticed the slight change in her demeanor. "You seemed to have… changed a little" he questioned after about a week after the incident. He was still in his hospital bed, but he was able to move around freely and only had to return when he had to undergo checkups and complete his therapy.

"I don't know what you're talking about" Rose replied. Although she may be ready to admit it to herself, she knew she wasn't ready to admit it to him. Rose was prepared for the thousand and one more questions he would fire in an attempt to get an answer, but he didn't question further. He sat down on his bed and smiled, and when she turned that smile on her it made her feel like she did when he done that a week ago, just after he broke the embrace. _For gods sake Rose, get a hold of yourself. Don't get caught up in this little high school romance theme, it isn't you _Her mind called furiously. And it was right.

Rose scowled and stood up. "I'm calling in for the day" and with that she walked out before Zack could get in another word. It was only the late afternoon, but she wanted, or rather needed distance from him. This was becoming too dangerous, especially when the likes of Wen are still out there hunting them somewhere. She had to pull herself together, and put her romance, or whatever the hell she wanted at the moment aside.

She had been residing at the near by inn, although she really only slept there. It was a bed and bathroom, that was about it and even that was shabby. She then reminded herself this is more of a fort then a town. She walked in, and wanted something to cool her blood which has been pumping wildly ever since Zack. An idea had come to her head, and so she entered, got her sword and went out, towards the swampy outskirts of Hoax.

* * *

Zack shifted uneasily in his small white sheet bed. The painkillers began to fade and clarity slowly consumed his hazy mind. _Something is off _he thought. Zack veered his head from one side to the other, as if to look for something in particular. He then let out a sigh, and sat up, placing his hands behind his back for stability. Small pain flickered from his shoulder, but nothing he wasn't already used to.

Something felt eerie to him, something he couldn't quite pinpoint. Intuition perhaps? He didn't know. It could be the drugs he supposed; and although had stopped taking painkillers days ago, he was still heavily medicated on other drugs which had similar effects. Perhaps they still had their delusional influence him. But it did little to shake the feeling of… unease, like something was coming. He wanted nothing more at that moment then to be armed with his spear as the feeling of insecurity almost became too overwhelming.

The doctor waltzed in not a few moments later, muttering to himself as he scanned down his clipboard of patients and their problems.

"Hey doc?" Zack asked, almost tentatively as he heard a string of cusses come from his mouth. "Yes?" the doctor replied, not taking his preoccupied eyes of the paper.

"Is err… everything alright? Like outside?" Zack questioned a little sheepishly. The doctors eyebrows raised, his eyes now firmly on his. "Don't worry doc, I didn't get into your medical supply and steal any painkillers" Zack laughed. "I just want to make sure everything is alright."

The doctor walked over to the nearby window and glanced out. He quickly turned his attention back to his clipboard after finding nothing of interest.

"Nope, nothing out of the ordinary" he assured. Zack nodded and thanked the doctor, and the doctor nodded in returned and disappeared into another room.

Sighing, Zack fell back onto his pillow, feeling silly and embarrassed. It was all probably paranoia, and he assured himself that not at every interval that something would go wrong just because it could. Closing his eyes, he felt tiredness sweep through his body like a river, and subsequently sleep began to grip him. Letting himself be consumed, he felt himself drift into a world of dreams and fantasy.

_Wake up!_

Zack's eyes flutter open instantly as he feels the warm gust of wind blow through him, his ears ringing loudly feeling like they're about to burst. Rolling off his bed, he peers outside, and his eyes widen in chock and horror at the site he now beholds.

Another explosion ensures.

* * *

_In the swampy outskirts, full of green overgrowth and thickets that made the area feel like the Amazon, Rose stalks, her movements slow and deliberate, her eyes narrow and focused, her posture composed and prepared. Like a cat some would describe her. She prowls, waits, and strikes at the right moment, sometimes not even giving her enemies enough time to register what had happened. Yes, a cat is a perfect comparison to the way Rose hunts. _

_Only the last dying rays of light remain in the red afternoon sky as A large four stubbed legged creature trotted across a large mud puddle, its eyes leering, and its large snout slightly ajar. The beast was not tall, but it was long, bore large sharp teeth and rough spiky armor. A crocodile it was, although these breed of crocodiles are more adapted, aggressive, not to mention slightly more intelligent then there fresh and salt water kin. There skin was a dark brown, to match the muddish swamps that they reside in. Its large tail waved as it propelled it faster through the thick swamp and dense shrubs. A small sound came from the near by bushes, and the Crocodile detected it. It spun its head in the direction of the sound, but it only got as far as half way before the crocodile found itself impaled on a large steel sword. A cat indeed was Rose, showing herself only when she struck, and usually that was all they saw if anything. Withdrawing the sword, she moved back into the green bushes, waiting for her next unfortunate prey._

_It had been a while since Rose had trained solo, but it was just the thing to get her mind off the matters which plagued her mind the most. Now she was able to escape it all, her mind and body focused on one thing: The hunt. Honing her skills was always something she couldn't get enough of, and while the enemies here proved to be no threat, they were still sport. For the few hours she had been out here, she had killed a satisfactory amount of monsters, although the humid climate and muddy terrain made it somewhat uncomfortable._

_Wiping beads of sweat off her brow with her muddy hand, she sighed and decided she should probably call it a day after the next kill. Her eyes flickered and she spotted her next prey. It came in the form of a merman, its upper body humanoid in every way, even its messy hair and brown eyes. The bottom half was a large blue tail that aided it in swimming, in this case the shallow swamps. Sizing it up, she readied herself for another kill._

_The merman stopped suddenly, lifted its head up and began to look around. For a moment, Rose thought she had been spotted, and was surprised considering she was camouflaged behind thick green undergrowth and bushes. Then it fled in the direction it came, screeching loudly as the near by crows in the trees spread out in there own directions._

_Wandering what upset them, Rose spun around when a shockwave rattled her, almost sending her sprawling. After she regained her equilibrium she gazed in the direction the blast came from, and shrieked in horror when she found out where it had came from. Running as fast as her legs would allow, she headed back to Hoax._

* * *

Another explosion rocked the city, blasting many and destroying much in the near by radius, although the blasts weren't as big as they sounded. Rose re-entered Hoax to find it in disarray. Bodies lay everywhere, construction rests aflame and chaos clouds the devastated city. It was somewhat reminiscent of when Sandora attacked Hoax last time. The two front watchtowers were blazing while the second level of the town was treated to a barrage of arrows. Some used the Inn and the strong iron walls of the houses and other structures to safeguard against the ranged onslaught, while others weren't so lucky. The floor level of the city, and more importantly the floor that Zack was housed in appeared to be systematically ransacked by soldiers.

Rose didn't have much more time to analyze any further. Two armored soldiers approached her, their eyes empty and their posture threatening. Rose glanced at the armored genome soldiers, and when they got within range she drew her sword and managed to strike one in the chest. Rose eased the blade out of her first Sandorian victim and lunged at the one right next her, hoping to gain a second consecutive kill. However, this soldier was not to be caught off guard, at least not on this exchange as his comrade had been and was able to place his spear in front of the incoming blade, preventing it from piercing its body.

Rose withdrew and lashed her blade towards the soldier a couple more times, although these were only deflected in the same fashion the first one had been. Sighing with vexation, Rose jumped back, sheathed her blade and opened both of her palms face up. Dark mist began to surround her hand, and the soldier started towards her, its spear high in the air. A smile crept across Rose's face and she clapped her hands together and sent a dark vortex towards her opponent, causing it to cry in agony as the black void consumed the genome soldier. Rose wasted no time and continued forwards, running towards the clinic and avoid avoiding outside interference where possible.

To Rose's horror the door inside had been forced open, the doorknob broken and the door nearly off its hinges. Holding her rapier close, she slowly entered the dark clinic, her eyes scanning the dim vicinity. She made her way to Zack's bed with no hassle, but was alarmed to find he was absent. Glancing around she could see no blood or any sign of a struggle. _He must have left _she thought.

"I wouldn't move missy" a light voice commanded. Rose felt the tip of something sharp press against the back of her neck. "Unless you want your spine and the rest of your body to stay in one piece" he added.

Rose moved her eyes sideways, her peripherals picking up the blonde soldier who held a spear to the back of her neck. She could spot three others, armed with bow and arrows watching her silently.

"I control these mindless goons, so it wouldn't be wise to –" Rose pivoted around with grace that amazed even the soldier and before he knew what had happened she was now behind him, her blade resting firmly against his Adams apple.

"Then you better call them off" she breathed into his ear. The man began to stutter, apparently not happy with the situation he had now found himself in.

"I only control these ones. The main commander is the only one with a universal authority" he explained, his voice high and fearful.

"Then tell me why you're here" She hissed. She pressed the blade harder against his neck, and bits of blood began to ooze out.

"We're here on an assassination mission, as well as retrieve any Dragoon Spirits we can" he stammered. "Although our primary object was our assassination target…" he trailed off, not saying any more. _Zack was your target, wasn't he? _Rose thought. The commander's face then brightened a little. "So can you let me go now?"

"…Sure" Rose agreed, and then pulled her blade across his neck, the jagged edge causing serrations in his neck as it sawed into his windpipe. Rose let go of the soldier and he fell face first into the white hospital tiles, chocking out his last few breaths. _I can let you go straight to hell _Rose mimed and noticed the other genome soldiers began to ready their bow. Wasting no further time, she sprinted back the way she came from and out the door into the frenzied streets.

Rose saw that the Sandora's numbers had dwindles significantly, and thought it a rather odd that the minuscule number of people dispatched was all that was dispatched. Once again it appeared Sandora had underestimated them, a habit caused by their growing arrogance she assumed. Running past all the hectic battles a struggles, she sprinted up to the second floor towards the Inn in hopes that Zack had turned up there.

Rose was able to make it to the Inn with relative ease, only having to kill few on her journey up. The door stood opened, and once she peered in she could see several bloody soldiers lying around the reception area. She heard screams from above, and sprinted up the stairs towards the apparent battle.

In the slim hallway of the inn that branched off into the independent rooms, Kongol stood, Zack at the wall behind him. His axe cleaved through another soldier, the blood spraying in the large giganto's eyes, causing momentary blindness. Kongol's frame being too large in the small area to simply go around (making him an effective wall between the soldiers and Zack), they launched an assault on the dazed foe. One thrust their spear into the olive giant's arm, in lodging it in forearm. Kongol dropped his axe in an act of reflex and roared with what sounded like more anger then pain, and he grabbed the spear, ripped it out and snapped in with his free hand. Although many would be fearful, many had been before, these empty vessels only stared at him, there face unflinching. Kongol leered and with the jagged end of the spear that ended with the metallic fine tip, he rammed it into the soldiers head, right between his eyes. He fell, but this gave Kongol no respite. Another soldier came at him, raising his blunt weapon menacingly. Kongol grabbed the genome with his large hand and with a mighty heave he threw him through the white plastered wall. The soldier yelped as he collided with the thin wall, breaking it and falling to the lower level.

Kongol turned his head to see two more soldiers remain. Kingol fell to one of his knees, exhaustion beginning to take its toll. He had fought from the hospital with Zack, out on to the streets. Sweat and blood mixed together as it dripped off his skin, and he felt his muscles begin to tighten, and then go numb. Even with all the fighting he had been doing, his body was made for the heat of combat, and it was a rarity that his body ever fell into a state of this kind of fatigue, especially this early. Forcing himself up onto his feet, which took tremendous effort, he readied himself for the fight that awaited.

As both soldiers lunged for him, one of them came to a sudden halt, groaning outwardly. The other soldier who was beside him during the attempted assault stopped and looked at his now injured foe, blood running down his chest. The soldier's eyes flashed as he saw the glint of steel, and saw what figure loomed behind it. But instead of turnings its attention to its wounded ally, it turned back for Kongol, raising his sword and beginning to chant a magic spell. Rose looked on in horror, being too far away to intervene in any way. Although Kongol's hide like skin protects him from physical harm, his body has no defenses for magical elemental assault, leaving him dangerously vulnerable to magic. Kongol let out a groan and jumped towards the last soldier at incredible speed. The soldier didn't have time to prepare for the attack, and as a result Kongol used one of his mammoth hands and wrapped it around the soldiers head, squeezing with intensifying pressure. Kongol's hurtling body crashing into the ground, but when they landed Kongol landed on top, maintaining his vice like grip. Squeezing as hard as he could, the skull began to fracture and cave in, emitting sickening crunching sounds. Blood oozed out of the eyes, nose, ears and mouth as Kongol's hand squashed the head like a grape. Kongol then released his grip, panting heavily almost doubling over.

Rose had scanned the area and found no more assailants, although that doesn't mean the same for outside. She ran outside and found the soldiers retreating to the upper hoax walls, climbing over and jumping into grasslands below. Rose saw a particularly interesting figure on the northern wall, standing above watching the mayhem erupt below. He wore the dark garments of a Sandorian Elite, and Rose assumed him to be the commander of this whole charade. As the last Sandorian hoped over the wall, he gave Rose a glanced, and he himself disappeared.

When Rose was sure they had all withdrawn or been killed, Rose reentered the Inn, and saw Zack's worried facing looming over a kneeling Kongol. "Is he alright?" Rose inquired, noting how strange it was for the Giganto to be such a state without any visible severe injuries.

"I dunno. He just kinda seems… really drained" Zack replied confused.

"Kongol fine" the giant assured and got to his feet. Sweat freely dripped from over his body and he still breathed heavily, like he had just run a marathon.

"You sure?" Rose asked with some concern, eyeing him closely. He nodded his head, and began to walk downstairs towards the exit of the Inn. Zack shot a look at Rose, who looked back at him and shrugged. "You get hurt?" she asked him. He shook his head softly.

"Kongol played the bodyguard" he replied solemnly. Rose nodded and signaled that they leave the Inn and catch up with the rest of the citizens and militia who are apt to be as confused as they were.

The trio wondered outside to the bottom floor square where they met meet Kaiser, an old veteran of the Knighthood of Basil. His grey short hair and numerous scars each tell a tale of there own, his features molded by the many tens of battles he has been apart of. He greeted them each, and Rose made the brief introductions of Zack.

"Those damn Sandorians never know when to quit" he cursed vehemently. He looked around, and although the damage had been significant, it wasn't as bad as he had first expected. Only few structures were destroyed beyond repair, and even less ended up dying. The attack was almost… botched.

"Everyone seems to be okay, most escaped with minor cuts and bruises. It appears our militia was the least of there worries" a voice added from behind them. The clinic doctor was where the voice came from, his face sullen yet thoughtful. "It doesn't make any sense, they all came, ran a muck then left. If they really wanted to capture or destroy Hoax they could have done it easily with a bit more coordination."

"I think it was me they were after" Zack inserted, looking down. "All this was done because of me."

Zack looked visibly shaken by the fact that all this rested on him, but Rose couldn't find a point to disagree.

Kongol still hadn't looked like recovering, although he was able to move a bit more freely then how he was getting here.

"Anyhow I'll check your injuries quickly, and that shoulder" the doctor ordered, looking at Zack's wounded arm. Zack waved it off "I'm fine doc, check him, he did all the battling" Zack pointed in the direction of Kongol. The doctor moved towards him, and while Kongol looked at the white doctor with a degree of distain, he didn't offer any resistance. The doctor had no real equipment on him; he salvaged what little he could from his destroyed clinic while really only included some medicines, needles and his stethoscope. After a few minutes of disinfecting his wounds and stitching his forearm gash he walked back over to rose and Zack, who where still had groups of worried citizens grouping around them.

"How is he?" Zack questioned.

"He appears fine physically, he wounds weren't all that deep and only his arm injury required stitching" he replied calmly.

"But doesn't he appear a little… weary? Almost unhealthily so" Rose asked. The doctor cocked his head attentively.

"He doesn't seem a little over fatigued" The doctor commented. "His bodily signs showed strange symptoms, and he had feverish head and sweat pouring from his body, particularly his chest, neck and arms."

"What is it?" Zack asked.

"I'm not entirely sure. It could be that he is just tired. I know that his physical injures didn't cause it, it appears something internal. I haven't the proper gear to assess it further though." Zack sighed. "Well, what is your synopsis doc?" he questioned soon after.

"If you ask me" he began, taking off his glasses and hooking them around the collar of his coat. "It almost appears it's a poison or some kind of slow reacting toxin" he analyzed. Rose's eyes shot over to Kongol, and then everything suddenly made sense. She replayed the events in her mind, and let out a disgusted groan when she had finished.

"It wasn't you they were after Zack" Rose almost moaned out. Zack looked at her, wondering if she came to the same conclusion he had.

"Kongol was their target." She finished, and Zack's head dropped. She had come to the same conclusion after all.


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30**

"How is he doc?" Zack questioned after they hauled Kongol back into the clinic, recovered what medical resources they could and examined him further on one of the linen covered beds.

"He… appears all right. For now" the doctor replied unhappily. "It seems to be some sort of slow acting poison. It's slowly deteriorating his muscle and tissue, as well as the vital organs. That's why fatigue symptoms are evident."

"Is there anything you can do?" the black haired warrior asked hopefully. The doctor looked somber. "No, I don't have the medical supplies to treat it. I can't even tell what kind of poison it is." The white doctor finished. Rose and Zack sighed heavily. They both knew what question is to come next, although Zack didn't quite have the nerve to ask. Rose however did.

"Is he going to live? She asked through her best indifferent tone. Zack found it hard to comprehend how in a situation that regards the life of her friend she can still be so apathetic. _Would she act the same way if I had been in Kongol's position? _He found himself wondering bitterly.

"Yes... At least for now" the doctor responded unhappily.

"How long does he have left?" Rose shot, giving the doctor no breathing time.

"I cannot say. Two hours, two days, two weeks… I cannot tell. All I know is that whoever did this did not want him dead straight away, and while I cannot pin point the time it will take for the poison to kill the Giganto, he is certainly on death row."

Rose glanced over to Kongol who was perspiring heavily, his jaw slightly agape and still taking in deep, dry breaths.

"Is there anything you know of? Any cure we can find?" Zack cried. The doctor shook his head, apologizing for the lack of help he can offer.

"A better idea would be to go to the Clinic in Lohan; they have the best doctors in Serdio, although how you will manage to lug him there is beyond me. It also appears the more he uses his body, the faster the poison takes effect, so he'd be long dead before you reach Lohan if you wish to travel by foot" he informed.

"Maybe we can run it to Lohan and back?" Zack wondered, waiting for Rose's approval. Rose frowned at the prospect. A trip over an active volcano is never easy, and it would take them days to get there, not to mention the days it would take to get back. Even then there's no guarantee that Kongol will even be alive by the time they get back, assuming they can acquire the necessary ingredients to cure his ailment. But even so, they had little other choice.

"I suppose" Rose replied finally, although even Zack could detect the doubt in her tone. Rose fumbled in her pocket for the White Silver Dragoon Spirit that she took from Zack after he attained it at Deningrad; the orb's dazzling natural light brightened the area immediately. _If only you're master was here _Rose thought longingly before putting it back from whence it came.

"We better make a move on then" Rose commanded.

"I'll do all I can to keep him alive, although I'm sure that isn't much condolence" the doctor interjected. Rose and Zack nodded and walked out of the hut and westward, towards the swampy marshlands that leads into Volcano Villude.

But before the swampy outskirts of the large volcano, there was a small walk through the last landscape of greenery that bled into the marsh. It wasn't much, and while it wouldn't usually be worth mentioning, a fateful meeting changed all of that.

"Do you hear that?" Zack questioned suddenly when they were nearing the end of the plain. Rose looked up, a large green hill blocking their vision from where the sound was coming from, yet Rose's ears were as keen as anyone's and she knew exactly what that sound meant.

"The sound of a battle" Rose stated after hearing the report of weapons and thuds.

"Shall we check it out?" Zack asked, gazing at yonder hill. Rose shrugged.

"We got to go over there anyway."

"I suppose" Zack spoke, and they both moved over the hill, and when they climbed to the top, the site they saw surprised and almost gawked them. Only one person stood, around her laid at least half a dozen masked raiders or bandits by the look of them. The young feminine looking women looked to be no older then Zack. Her straight blonde hair that fell to her shoulders moved with the breeze, her green eyes narrowed as she spotted them on the near by knoll.

At first her eyes narrowed, almost threateningly as she tried to make out her observers. Once she got clear view of whom they were, her eyes widened with surprise and excitement, a broad smiling crossing her young white face.

She sprinted up the hill with speed that even impressed Rose. On the outside, she looked to be a normal city girl, whose hardship wouldn't surpass the choice of what clothes she should wear a day. But after seeing what she did to those anonymous goons, not to mention the fighting stance she took which looked somehow familiar, there was much more to this girl then meets the eye.

It wasn't long until she approached them, and when she did her smile beamed out even wider.

"Greetings! You must be Rose and Zack" she started before either Zack or Rose could say anything. Warning bells went off in her head and she began to stiffen.

"Who wants to know?" Rose replied, her hand instinctively dropping to her sword as always. As subtle as the movement was, the blonde women picked it up at once and threw her hands up as if to surrender.

"Please, I bring no hostility with me so you can relax." _She's quick_ Rose thought.

Of course, Rose didn't, if anything she took that more of a reason not to relax. "State your business, we are in a hurry. If it's a fight you want, then let's make it quick." The women sighed outwardly.

"As careful as reputed" the women remarked. She edged her face a little closer to Rose, and Rose edged hers a little back.

"I guess you don't remember me. Not that I blame you, amongst all the chaos what's so memorable about someone like me?" Rose gave her a look of impatience.

"I am Lucile, one of the survivors from Rogue. I saw you both fight the Sandorians on the shore. I wanted to catch up with you, but you had gone as soon as you came and I didn't have the chance."

"A chance to what?" Rose asked edgily. Lucile took a few steps backwards, brushed off the particles of dust that clung to her tunic, which was an almost identical to Herschel's top but instead of a purple colour it was white. It covered her neck and chest, but left her arms exposed. It was fastened to her similar coloured pants by a red knotted karate like belt. Her top also bore similar black tribal murals, obviously sentimental to her home culture.

"I too have witnessed the devastation Sandora have done. I lost my mother and brother in the brutal attack some weeks ago, and while I know I am not the first to experience such losses, it is my wish to make it the last." Zack cringed in sympathy.

"Do you really want to join us? I mean, its no game, its true dangers" Zack invoked, in hopes he would deter the girls resolve.

"I am positive. My martial arts groom me for such dangers" she replied, her eyes burning with determination and will. Zack looked at Rose, although he knew what the answer was. Sighing, he turned to the girl and tried to find the words to ease her down gently.

"You cannot come. You are no use to us" Rose answered coldly. Zack scolded her mentally for her bluntness. The golden women's eyes fell, as she felt her world shatter. Rose, who had assumed that that would be enough, began to walk forward.

"Wait" her voice croaked out. Rose halted for a moment.

"I can find a way to help you. I know advanced martial arts, the one made famous from Rogue no less, and I know some advanced medical treatment" she pleaded.

Rose shook her head without a word and continued on. Zack froze for a moment and looked at the girl, her head down, then at Rose who was walking away.

"I'm coming with you" the women stated stubbornly. Rose felt her temper begin to rise. She had no time for this, and even if she is surprisingly strong and has medical training she is of no use to her.

Before she could open her mouth to tell her such, a bright light beamed from within her. Rose froze, as she felt the warm sensation travel up her spine and to the top of her head.

_It can't be _she mimed as she went into her pocket and into pulled out the White Silver Dragoon Spirit. It resonated brightly, and everyone stood stunned as it did. _Is it possible?_

"Girl, come here" Rose ordered. Lucile tentatively walked towards her until Rose signaled her to stop. She only stood a few feet from Rose. Rose put the spirit on the ground. Its shimmer had subsided, although it still held an unmistakably buoyant glow.

Rose took a few steps back and waited. Nothing happened at first, and just as Rose was about to dismiss the idea and collect the spirit it was again shone, and to Rose's and Zack's amazement it began to levitate. At first it idly floated between Rose and Lucile, and then it slowly began to move towards the blonde women who could only look in amazement and wonder. It stopped only a few inches from her chest, still shining as it hovered. Lucile stared at it, perplexed for a few moments, and then and then as if she was slow to get the idea like a person is slow to pick up a joke, she cupped her hands around the Dragoon Spirit, and it's resonance faded.

"It's chosen you" Rose mused in wonder. The women still appeared puzzled, although holding this stone had never felt so right in her life. It's as if all the puzzle pieces in her life have fallen in place and all the crossroads have been made one way. All her exhaustion from weeks of traveling and the cuts and bruises she had sustained all melted away. And then the moment faded, and she felt human again, like herself.

"Do you accept the responsibilities of the Dragoon Spirit, and accept to be its new master?" Rose inquired, snapping Lucile out of her reverie. The women nodded absently. "I guess."

"Then it's settled. She is coming with us" Rose decided, and she began to walk towards the marshlands. Lucile's eyes widened in happiness, and she almost jumped in victory. She had been searching for them for so long, and she didn't honestly think they would allow her to accompany them.

The women ran up in front of Rose, bowed, and thanked profusely.

"No need" Rose waved off. But she saw a small scar that ran across her left cheek. The only flaw on her otherwise untainted face, although it did little to blemish her otherwise attractive features. She also noticed Lucile was a little shorter then Rose, which was no real surprise. She was taller then most girls, a lot of guys as well. Still, she couldn't help but hold some strange fascination about the scar. Unusual, everyone has scars and it shouldn't be surprising coming from someone who trains heavily in the martial arts, but still, she wanted to know how she got it.

"Nice to have you aboard" Zack greeted warmly, although he himself was still a little confused. Lucile smiled at him, and bowed her head in much the same fashion she had to Rose. _She looks so harmless _Zack thought to himself, and then looked over at the group of raiders who were still no moving.

"What happened over there?' Zack asked.

"Oh, a run in with some bandits" She replied almost casually.

"And you killed them all by yourself? Zack asked amazed. The women shook her head.

"I prefer not to kill where possible. I simply knocked them out." Zack could almost feel the dislike from Rose at having another "soft" companion as she'd call it.

"We can chat along the way, for now we need to move on.' Zack was about to continue before he remembered something about the White Silver Dragoon.

"Can't she heal Kongol? I mean, you said the White Silver Dragoon was known for healing all sorts of ailments, right?" He asked. Rose's eyes widened.

"Of course. How could I be so silly as to forget that?" she spoke, a little embarrassed at her over zealousness. Lucile glanced at them with a look of confusion.

"What's going on?" she asked nervously. She began to shift her feet circularly in the patch of dirt she was standing on.

"We can explain along the way. We best move back, and hope that you have the spirit and will that is required for the next task" Rose enlightened and began back towards hoax, where a slowly dying Kongol waits to be treated.

* * *

Upon there arrival to Hoax, Rose and Zack explained about Kongol, and the brutal yet swift attack that took place at the hands of Sandora. Luckily, it appeared Lucile had been in touch with gossip and knew very much about her old group, so they didn't have to explain who Kongol was. That meant less explaining when they had to recollect the events of what had transpired so far. That alone would take most of a day or night.

It appeared that the familiarity didn't stop at gossip either. She revealed that she was a student of Haschel, and held a strong rapport with him before his voyage to find his missing run away daughter Claire. The news was a bit startling, although the next question that came from her lips recreated the somber atmosphere.

"What has happened to master Haschel?" she had asked. Rose and Zack exchanged glances.

"That's something we will have to discuss later, when we recall the rest of our tale" Rose replied. The blonde women could almost sense the tragic answer, but gave no further protest.

Rose also took the time to study the new Silver Dragoon's candidate. She held herself with an air of confidence, although not enough to call it arrogance. Her heart was definitely pure, which would be one of the prime reasons she stole the spirit's attraction but she had a strong sense of justice. She was rather chatty, although not so much as Zack and she did have her reserved moments, which Rose was glad for. She also possessed a strong determination that reminded her of Shana, although she was a little more outspoken and less callow. But she wasn't as outright as Miranda either, which led Rose to believe she was somewhere in between the two. A good thing, in Rose's opinion.

"And here we are" Zack commented upon arrival.

"I heard this place was locked up like a fort due to the numerous attacks that this town has sustained. It really is true…" she trailed off. Rose didn't comment on the matter, only walked fourth and entered the town. Lucile looked at Zack, and spoke "She really is cold isn't she? Either that or she doesn't like me." Zack shrugged nonchalantly.

"You'll get used to it. Its how she is" Zack responded with equal casualness. "Don't be too intimidated." And so they both ran to catch up with a fleeting Rose.

They pushed through the crowds of people who still inhabited the towns outdoors and managed to gain entry to the hospital. They walked inside, greeted the doctor, and stood over Kongol's bed. He was on the verge of unconsciousness, his white eyes appeared swollen and his body was drenched in sweat.

"Zack, I need you to stand back" Rose commanded. Zack did so, standing back with the doctor. She turned her attention to Lucile, who was standing adjacent to her.

"Now, this will test you to see what you're all about. The White Silver Dragoon is capable of healing some of the most fatal wounds, although of the latter you'll only acquire through practice and experience. You told me you have knowledge of medicine, although how much help that will be to you know I don't know."

"Wow, this is the first time I've laid eyes on a Giganto. He's huge!' Lucile exclaimed.

"Pay attention" Rose snapped. The women turned her head and faced her, her expression a little stricken. "Now, I need you to pull out your Dragoon Spirit." The women did so.

"Now, I need you to try and treat this Giganto. He has been afflicted by an unidentifiable poison, but with the White Silver Dragoon Spirit in your hand, even such a task as this can be done by a beginner such as you" Rose finished. Lucile nodded, a little anxious.

"How" she finally asked.

"Will. It's what's important here. You need to bend the Dragoon's power to your will. Now luckily, you shouldn't need to transform to treat him, but as your first lesson, will is what's important. The spirit feeds on us, and consequently if we do not take and maintain control, then we will be the ones controlled by the remnants of the dragon's spirit that is most often malicious." Lucile gulped.

"It's will, it's all it is. Concentrate. Touch Kongol's body with your hand and use your body as a gateway between yourself and him, a tunnel to funnel the healing powers that the spirit can grant. Concentrate" Rose coaxed. Lucile tenderly placed her open palm and all five fingers on Kongol's bare chest, and closed her eyes. Her spirit clasped in one hand and the other on Kongol, she began. Furrowing her brow, she tried harder to will the essences of the Dragoon's magic into her and him, but so far to no avail.

"Try visioning it in your head, sometimes it helps" Rose suggested. Lucile tried it, and she began to feel a warm boiling sensation start in depths of her stomach.

"I feel... warm in my stomach" Lucile commented, her eyes closed and still knotted in concentration.

"Good. Now grasp it, force it out and try to expel it into Kongol. Will it through" Rose assisted. Lucile did all she could to follow, although she could only get it to go to the tips of her fingers. She could feel more then know that although the warm soothing feeling was well within her, it hadn't crossed into Kongol yet. It was like a barrier prevented it.

"I can't make the connection" she rasped; sweat flowing freely from her forehead. The warm feeling began to wither away; back towards her stomach from where it had came from. Rose could feel this. "Don't let it go, grab it, will it forward. Bend the essence and make it yours to command. Focus!" Despite Rose's motivation, she still felt the energy slipping by her. By this stage it had left her arms and had secluded back to the depths of her stomach from where it originally flared. Feeling alarmed, Rose pulled out her own Dragoon Spirit, and with her free arm she grasped the wrist of Lucile that was holding her own spirit. _She needs more direct assistance _Rose thought furiously. She didn't know what the result would be if both of their Dragoon essences mixed, but she didn't have time. If she let things be, the girl would lose the precarious progress she had made, and with that much mental pressure she would not be able to perform it again for at least a couple of hours. And to succeed completely it would probably take at least three or four attempts, and with the long intervals in between it would prove far too costly. It had to be done now.

Rose focused her own will, and poured some of her vitality into Lucile. She felt it immediately, and like a spark her own Dragoon essence blazed and began to grow, grow until it was once again at the tips of her fingers. _This is where I was last time _Lucile thought, fatigued. Rose sensed she needed one final push, and transferred a bit more of her energy into Lucile, and that proved to be enough to penetrate the breaking point. Muffled mumbled were heard from Kongol as his body became engulfed in a light silver aura.

"Just focus, keep focusing, we're almost done" Rose encouraged. With all of Lucile's will, she shot the last bit of white energy that remained in her body into Kongol, and while she didn't know what to do, her instincts did. She gathered the energy that swam around Kongol's body and dispersed it, creating a large flash of light in the room. The light shone for several seconds, and as it died down, Lucile opened her eyes, and crashed to her knees in utter exhaustion. Sweat dripped from what felt like all orifices, and her vision began to blur.

"You did well" Rose complimented. She turned to the doctor. "Please check him to see if his condition is improving." Zack couldn't help but notice Rose too was a little short on breath.

"Are you both alright?" Zack asked, his concern more towards Lucile.

"I'm fine" Rose replied, her attention firmly on Kongol. Zack turned to Lucile who didn't answer, only propped herself onto the near by wall, still in a sitting position.

"And you?" he asked.

"I'm fine… just.. a little short.. on breath.. give me a.. sec" she replied breathlessly. Zack knelt down beside her. Lucile's head rolled back and she closed her eyes, and saw nothing more then sweet, sweet darkness.

"Is it alright if I move her to the bed next-door?" Zack asked the doctor. He nodded, and then went back to checking on Kongol. Zack felt a ting of irritation at the fact that everyone suddenly ignored Lucile, yet she was the one who had done most of the work. Sighing, he lifted her up, and took her into the room next door where a fresh bed awaited.

"How is he?" Rose asked the doctor who had finished his examination on Kongol.

"He's condition has improved, and his breaths have become steady and frequent. By the looks of it, that young women saved her, although how is beyond me."

"Best you didn't know" Rose spoke, and then heard a small groan from Kongol. They both turned there heads towards him, and his white glistening eyes came to life. He turned his head and stared right at Rose, and she felt a surreal feeling pass through her, as if Kongol was trying to speak or say something. Then, something strange happened. She could have sworn his lips curved into a smile. She looked again and the smile, if that was what it really was, faded, and his eyes closed once more. She felt relief flow through her none the less. If he was lucid enough to do that, then he was going to be fine after all.

All of a sudden, the doctor pressed the side of his head against the large Gigantos chest, so his ear was pushed against the area of his heart. He left it there for a few seconds, his expression changing to that of dismay. Eventually, he pulled his head away, and the doctor's face turned nearly as pale as his lab coat.

"He has stopped breathing." He chocked out. Rose's eyes flashed with genuine fear.

"He's dead."


	31. Chapter 31: Interlude: Mournful Losses

**Chapter 31: Interlude – Mournful Losses**

Rose whipped around and sprinted into the room next door, where Zack is tucking an exhausted Lucile into the linen covered bed. Zack yelped in surprise as Rose entered, and in a flash she was at Lucile's bed, shaking her wildly.

"Wake up, we have more work to do" she cried, her voice hoarse and almost trembling. Zack had no idea what would put her in such a state, it was certainly one of only few rare occasions that could throw her out of her usual cool and calm demeanor, and that was generally triggered by something of great impact.

"Rose, tell me what's wrong" Zack questioned alarmed. She ignored him and nearly dragged the near unconscious girl out of the bed.

"Rose!' Zack half yelled, trying to calm her mind at the site of her nearly straddling her defenseless new ally in an effort to move her limp body from the bed. He soon understood words could not reach her, and before she would completely rip their new yet barely conscious companion, he grabbed Rose by the waist and forcefully dragged her away from the bed. Rose was startled by Zack's sudden yet physical decision, and before Rose could restore her equilibrium and punish him dearly for it, he had no doubts she could in her apparent state of mind, he got behind her and acted as a solid wall between her and Lucile.

"Rose settle down and tell me what is going on" he commanded in a deep and what he hoped was devoid of the creeping fear that began to grip his own emotions.

Rose stared into his burning eyes, and it was in those blue, blazing yet tranquil eyes that she was able to salvage some sort of composure. Taking deep breaths, she gave him the answer he desired.

"Kongol just died."

Zack was thunderstruck. He couldn't believe what he heard. Wasn't it not a minute ago they all witnessed the miracle that only the White Silver Dragoon holder could deliver? Wasn't he saved?

"Are you sure?" Zack asked, his own voice husky. Yet he knew this was something Rose would joke about, so he only hoped by some off chance she had misread the situation.

"It's just been confirmed by the doctor" Rose replied a little more steadily. All hope of his latter thoughts vanished at that last statement, and all Zack could do was bow his head in grief. Yet he had to stand firm, this time he had to, for his and Rose's sake.

"Rose, Lucile cannot help us. Even if she wasn't in such a state where she can barely keep her eyes open, you yourself said it took much experience to heal mortal wounds. And even if she had, she cannot bring back the dead."

A small silence, and then a stern reply rose from Rose's lips, and it almost tore her apart to voice it. "_I know_."

Zack sighed deeply. _Another friend, and yet another loss_. _It seems to be a common trade of as of late _he thought mournfully. He asked another question he didn't want to, but curiosity, even in a situation as grim as this never ceased to beckon.

"How?" he asked, voicing his wonder.

"We're not sure. Looks like the poison got him after all" Rose spoke in a low voice that he could hardly recognize as hers

"Geezus" He replied in frustration. He dropped to the ground with a thud, although it was a noise far, far away from where Rose's mind was right now. Once again, Zack found himself in one of those rare predicaments where he remained speechless. Any respond that rose to his lips sounded hollow or callous. _Damn it, you need to say something. She needs you! _Zack's mind barked at him. But it was to no avail, and all he could do was stare into her cloudy, sorrow filled eyes, who still was trying to register what had just transpired.

Finally Rose shifted slightly, her hand subconsciously moving to the black rose that shone on the side of her face, breaking the deadening silence. The far away hazy look that had consumed her eyes had faded, although what replaced it was something far worse. A look of complete and utter anguish, grief and sorrow now became evident. At that moment, looking into her eyes, he couldn't help but let his own tears fall. He didn't know if it was because of the death of a close companion, or because of the broken spirit of an even closer lover. A little bit of both, he assumed.

The sound of sheets shifting came from behind Zack, and when he turned around he could spot Lucile slowly moving, getting herself into a sitting position. This appeared to take great effort, but after looking at the pale and almost dead look that the women's face expressed, neither was surprised.

"I'm…. I'm sorry" she breathed lightly. She had apparently overheard the conversation, and carried the burden of failure as well. She looked at Rose, almost as if to find some sort of reassurance. But Zack knew she would find none, and if it was that she was seeking, then it would have to come from him.

"You did all you could Lucile. There was no more we could have asked for." Zack tried to support, although the statement sounded hollow, even to his own ears.

Rose on the other hand had no trouble blaming her. She knew it was wrong, and it was a miracle she was even able to do as much as she did, but it did little to ease the pain and misery. She had to blame someone, anyone. It was just luck, or rather the opposite that she had been where she was at that particular time. But as much as she blamed her, as much as she had to blame someone else, it was all overshadowed by the blame and guilt she placed upon herself. She was, above all, the person she held responsible for the death of Kongol, the last of, as of this point, the extinct Gigantos.

Another silence filled the room, and even the doctor, who was observing from the outside, dared not enter to break it. The three of them (four if you include the doctor) all remained in their positions, not moving a muscle or muttering a word. For the next few minutes, the uninterrupted silence was their tribute to their passing ally and friend, a friend in Rose's mind who died the worst death of all.

* * *

What was left of the afternoon was spent disposing Kongol's body in the most respectful way they could. Rose wanted nothing more herself then to bury him within the solid yet eroding walls of the Giganto homelands, but when a man who felt like weighed at least five hundred pounds was required to be carried over to another continent, not to mention the fact they would have to hike up the Valley of Corrupted Gravity, no one was putting their hand up to volunteer, not even herself. Instead they had to settle for the next best thing; a burial alongside the other troops of Bale who fought and gave there lives. This was situated in a little graveyard memorial, only a few hundred meters outside of Hoax. It was a sacred ground, dedicated to the countrymen who sacrificed everything, yet it felt fitting that Kongol should be among them. What was once a giant monster, reformed into one of the seven Dragoon Knights who saved the world, a world that was on the brink of extinction. 

As such, he was given a large white cross tombstone on top of his burial area that read: _"Kongol, the last of the remaining Gigantos. He has taught us much, and displayed amazing courage. May your soul rest in peace."_

Even Lucile tried to help where possible, although she could do little but rest. Gods only knew she would need it for the trials ahead. But it was still all too obvious she took blame for the untimely demise of there friend, and no amount of Zack's persuasion could change that feeling that seeded itself in her conscience. She was very serious to a fault, and to her, this was the biggest of all.

Even Zack kept his distance for the first while, letting her stand in front of his grave, staring at his tombstone with milky eyes. She was probably voicing her thoughts in her head, perhaps trying to communicate with her diseased friend that way, but no audible words were detectable.

After spending his free time helping the villagers rebuild, he took a look at the orange sun that had set itself just above the line of horizon that signified the end of its presence for that day. The surrounding clouds almost appeared to bleed, reflecting the strong orangey colour of the sun into an almost blood red radiance. _The world mourns the loss of another race _Zack thought dimly. Deciding it was time Rose got at least some sort of rest, although he knew she probably would not sleep, she had enough problems with the burdens she already carried without adding this into it, he began to head into the memorial, stationed A little north. It wasn't anything special or anything that in particular that required noting. It contained a large steel fence that went around the perimeter, a steel gate at the front allowed access. After that rows and rows of plaques and headstones were aligned accordingly on the long greenish grass. Kongol's was towards the north east.

"Hey there" Zack greeted shallowly. Rose regarded him with a quick glance, before placing it once again on Kongol's tomb.

_This won't be easy _Zack sighed within himself. "Hey, it's gonna get dark soon, and you should rest up some" Zack tried to encourage. Rose didn't respond.

"Rose?" he echoed, trying to capture her attention. This time he succeeded in gaining some measure of success. She turned her head; her body still in the same standing position, her inner leg was placed normally, her foot facing forward while the outer leg was pivoted to the side, her foot facing to the right.

Her eyes told the entire story. Eyes that held in emotion that much needed releasing. She looked on the verge of breaking, like stuffing too many things in a jar and only just being able to put the lid on. But that was as far as her emotions were shown, that much he knew from experience. She would not cry, would not openly mourn, would not seek condolence. She would only continue, the extra burden only closing the gap between herself and destruction of her sanity. Zack could only wonder how much left was to destroy before the weight of it all would shatter her mind into millions of little pieces. If he was her, it probably would have happened eleven thousand years ago…

But that couldn't happen, he wouldn't let it happen. She is all they had now, and if they didn't have her leadership, her guidance, her ability to remain cool and keep her wits about her during any situation, no matter how dire they may seem, then all hope would be lost. He had try and levitate some of the pressure, try and widen the gap between her self and her surefire emotional demolition. Sighing inwardly, and hoping that the next gesture would be well received, at least for her sake, he walked over to her and closed his hands over the top of hers, his empty palm resting against the tops of her cold hands and her battle warn knuckles. At first she did nothing, as if his hand had been there the entire time.

"You know" she began, her voice returning to its usual demeanor. Zack could easily spot the strain it took for her to uphold such a task, but he let her continue without any interruption. If she was going to open up, accept him as her emotional support on one level or another, then he'd be damned if he was going to stop it.

"The worst part about this incident is the way he died" she continued. Her words were almost slow and agonizing. "Kongol, or the entire Giganto race rather, were proudly bred warriors. It's what that they did; it's what they were born to do. Even though he transcended the conventional teachings and was able to align himself with us humans to defend a greater cause of equality, he was a proud warrior none the less. And the best way to die, the proudest way to go out was on the battlefield. But it wasn't on the battlefield he died Zack. He died on a bed in some fucking hole of a clinic while the battle was to be fought outside. He died by a poison, a dog's death, the death only suitable for a coward."

Zack almost withdrew at the venomous in her tone, not to mention the drop of profane that was very uncharacteristic of her. Feeling the split in her mind, the shift of her internal pendulum that separated her mentality from pure bloodlust, he squeezed harder on her hand, as if to bring her back down to earth. To Zack's surprise, she returned it. She turned her hand upside down and intertwined their fingers, squeezing harder is if he was the only thing holding her up. But perhaps in her mind, where she stands on one solitary rock inside an everlasting raging storm, he was all she could hold on to.

"They couldn't even give him an honorable death, the honor of dying on the battlefield, which is what a true warrior deserves. And Kongol personified everything a true warrior should be."

Zack shook his head softly but firmly, and a warm smile began to creep across his face.

"That's where I think you're wrong dear Rosie. He did die on the battlefield, just not on the battlefield you know. In my mind, the battlefield doesn't start and end when the bodies hit the floor, when the bloodlust begins, when the death toll reaches a number that can only be estimated. No, the battlefield starts as soon as you commit yourself to a cause, as soon as you prepare, as soon as you engage. As soon as you journey, take that step closer to reaching your goal. That, is where I think the battlefield is, and not only that, where it is won and lost."

Rose looked like she was about to interject, perhaps to debate such a foolish idealistic. But his eyes silenced her.

"The internal battle your mind wages is far more impacting, meaningful and in the end judgmental then the ones you fight physically. Those are the demons you cannot simply slay by the swing of a sword; they are not demons you can turn away from or ones that will ever retreat. These are the demons that challenge your every resolve, question you're every judgment, wrong you're every decision. And Kongol faced this with the utmost determination, never looking back, never hesitating to follow what he thought was right. It is these areas where the battle must also be fought, and is what I consider to count as part of the battlefield. So did Kongol die on the battlefield? You bet he did. And you know what, not only did he die, but he was a success, a winner, a champion, a conqueror." Rose could only look at him, stupefied by what he had just said. Nothing she had heard sounded so wrong and at the sound time sounded so perfectly accurate.

"…I hope so" was her only reply, yet he could feel a glint of hope in her voice, and if he gave her back that, then he had done more then he had set out to do in the first place. Still hand in hand, the couple stood in unmoving silence, enjoying each others company and giving their final unspoken farewells to their departed comrade. But perhaps not only to him, but to all the losses they had suffered so far.

* * *

**Note: **Just like to thank all the readers and reviews I have gained over the last thirty chapters. While not plentiful as that of other authors, what I have achieved so far has given me a sense of pride and joy. I am aware that LOD is a game without a fan base of that of franchise like Final Fantasy, and as such I didn't expect to have a great deal of readers or reviewers. But none the less, it is those few comments and readers that give me the will to continue, and as such you really are the most powerful and motivational tool an author has. So again, thank you for your time spent, it does mean a lot to an aspiring author such as myself. I really hope you do keep reading, and for any new readers that come along, welcome and enjoy. 

Now without any further ado, let us continue the adventure of Rose and her fellow companions, who are bound to face many more hardships before their journey finally comes to a close.

- Michael.


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter 32**

Rose and Zack made their way back to the Hoax Inn. The damage it sustained was minimal, only one room was ruined beyond use, and so they were able to base their operations there for the night. The Inn keeper charged them a hyper inflated charge, apologizing porously but telling them it was necessary for the funds required to finance the damage to their town. Rose scoffed; making note that it was them who saved their city from being completely demolished, and they lost a very close friend because of it. The innkeeper could only apologize once more but assure them it was what needed to be done, but he was able to give them a 3 bedroom unit, complete with a kitchen and even a wash room, which was apparently the best they had to offer.

Lucile was also up and about, although her spirit couldn't be more downtrodden. Still taking blame for her weakness, she vowed to both Zack and Rose that she would do all she could live up to the expectations of a Dragoon Knight. Rose acknowledged her pledge, told her to rest up because tomorrow she would go through Rose's training, much like Zack had. Zack cringed at the thought. The poor women had no idea what awaited her, and what a harsh instructor Rose could be. Still, she smiled politely enough, and with a new found enthusiasm she promised Rose she would surpass all her expectations. Zack could almost see the glassy roots of her keenness, and imagined by tomorrow how shattered those roots would be. Rose already had higher expectations then the girl could possibly meet, and while she meant pure, the thought of her surpassing those standards was near laughable. Once Lucile went into her room, Zack and Rose were left in the small dining room, which really had nothing more then the table and the kitchen behind it, eating the remaining remnants of their food. It was some local fish with a few pot boiled vegetables.

"Lucile is really placing herself at blame for Kongol's death" Zack brought up. He really didn't want to bring him up, but as was his habit, things came out of his mouth before they registered through his brain.

"If it aids in her determination and progress, then it is for the best" Rose simply replied, finishing the last bite of her meal.

Zack raised an eyebrow, eying her closely. "That's a little rough don't you think?"

Rose shrugged, the topic seemingly disinteresting her. "The world is a rough place; you should know that by now." Zack did know, but it didn't stop the fact that placing the burden of a death that you weren't the cause of wasn't right, nor could it be good.

"But we really don't know how she'll handle it. She is young, and while she may have experience in the martial arts, I doubt she'd have any real battle experience outside the occasional wayward monster" Zack protested.

"She can, and she will have to. I think she has the right attitude, and even though she may not have caused his death, in her mind she did and instead of crying about it she is going to better herself so it doesn't happen again. That's one good quality I am impressed with" Rose retorted. Zack felt a twinge of hurt, interpreting the last bit of that remark as a stab at his former, weaker resolve.

"In any event, she is a candidate of the White Silver Dragoon, and as such only those of the purist heart and incorruptible virtue can claim that right. With an uncompromising determination, I think she'll do fine." Rose ended the statement emphatically, leaving he topic no longer up for debate. Zack sighed, picked up his half eaten plate and place it on the sink.

"I'm going to bed" Zack announced uncharacteristically detached. It wasn't often that Rose was treated to the same medicine she had perhaps dished out him on too many occasions during their time together, but it always managed to unnerve her. Rather, she hated it. With emotions still running high, a sort of tension came between that that could be cut by the proverbial knife. Watching him as he strode past her chair and into the door that separated the bed from the kitchen, she called out his name in attention.

"Yes?" he replied, standing in the now open doorway.

"Look, if my methods prove ineffective or don't produce the necessary progress, then I'll let you take charge. How does that sound?"

Zack remained silent for a moment, pondering her words. "Yeah, alright, sounds good" Zack responded, his usual brightness beginning to crawl back into his tone. Rose nodded, offing no more to the conversation.

"Well… goodnight" Zack said almost sheepishly. Rose wished him a good night in much the same manner, and as she heard the small click of the door knob that signified the closing of his door, a small smirk crossed her face.

_You found yourself unable to leave such a situation with him unresolved. For the first time, you went out of your way to make sure the problem was solved. It isn't his cold voice you hate, it's his anger and disappointment, such meager outlooks that you would once throw out without even a thought. You've grown weak old girl _the cynical portion of her mind spoke to her. And again the notion of over attachment lingered in her mind. While the logical side of her brain told her to stop it now, before it was too late, if it wasn't already, her heart seemed to shroud that logic, as if for one of the rare occasions her heart had overruled her mind. The dismaying fact, although not so dismaying anymore as she had accepted these facts some days ago, was that her heart embraced all these romantic ideals, and told her to indulge whole heartedly in them. And for the first time, she found herself unable to control those urges, unable to keep her emotions in check. Another fierce battle between her head and heart waged on, but she had an idea in the end who would win out. Sighing, she did all she could to put these thoughts to rest. She had other priorities to worry at the moment, Lucile for one, Wen and the rest of Sandora for another. Whatever would happen would happen, regardless of what she did or didn't do, so it was best for now to focus on the things she could control. Rose absent mildly pulled out the golden orb that once belonged to her long time friend, studied it for a moment, before putting it back into her satchel. She didn't know if they would bump into a another candidate, but she did know she sure as hell wasn't letting Wen, or any of Sandora for that matter get their hands on it.

"Looks like another sleepless night' Rose muttered to herself. Pushing herself out of her chair, she placed her own empty plate next to Zack's on the steel sink, turned to the near by window that overlooked the now darkened city of Hoax, and let out another long sigh as she inevitably entered another one her thoughtful deliberation. Leaning against the window frame and staring into the immediate blackness, Rose felt herself at a cross roads, two intertwining paths but unable to pick which one to follow. With all her heart, she wished her best friend was still with her, there to give her advice, to give her the guidance she so desperately needed. Quietly, she voiced her troubles into the night, as if the friend she was thinking about was right there beside her.

"Shirley, what am I supposed to do?"

* * *

Rose only managed to get an hour or so of sleep before the sun reared itself over the dark, brooding clouds, signifying the start of her days work. She didn't complain though, she had certainly had less sleep in her long and drawn out life, and her body didn't much protest either. 

To her surprise, Lucile had also been up; finishing what looked like her breakfast.

"Rise and shine" the young women greeted between spoonfuls of what looked like porridge.

"I've certainly risen, but don't know about the shine" Rose replied humorlessly. After waiting for a response, and seeing none forthcoming, she decided she was up for a bit of chit chat before the long day ahead of them truly began.

"Good that you're up early, it'll become a habit." Lucile smiled a little; it looked like an innocent bashful smile a child gives given a statement they don't quite know how to take.

"It's nothing I'm not use too. My training has taught me to live on only minimal sleep while still drilling a days worth of exercise" she replied a little proudly.

"That's one thing we're going to have to make clear. While I teach you how to harness the power of a dragoon, I'll need you to forget that training. It'll be hard, given its probably second nature, and while it may help in other situations, in this it won't. You'll need to follow my instructions exactly, and presume nothing beyond them." Rose commanded. The women nodded slowly, her look of pride for what she thought had impressed her new master now disappearing.

"Hopefully it has given you some spiritual and mental strength, but beyond that you will need to learn new techniques. We only have a short window of time to speed you up, and so I'll pre warn you. This will be tough, tougher then anything you mostly likely would have experienced, even more draining then when you tried to save Kongol. But in saying that, once you got the hang of it it'll all become easier."

Lucile had to repress the temptations to ask the boat full of questions that entered her mind, but decided she would find out for herself. She didn't know Rose much, but knew enough that her training would relentless at best. Putting aside her fears, she would will herself through this. This is what she wanted, a chance to make a difference, a chance to change the direction the war was heading. A chance to make things, at least in her mind, right again.

Rose could hear the faints breaths and snores from Zack in his bed room. She breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't need him floating about during her teachings, reprimanding her for her harshness or unfairness. If things went well, she would have most of the day to herself and her new student, if that's what you'd call her. She was still uneasy with being the leader, but it seemed to be a position she found herself in all too much of late.

The duo set out into the grasslands just outside Hoax, near the knoll where she had met Lucile for the first time. Rose signaled her to a halt, and then continued walking until a few feet of distance was between them. Then she went into her pouch, pulled out her own dark orb.

"Now watch" Rose ordered. She closed her eyes, and slowly as clouds of darkness shrouded her body, they disappeared, Lucile gawking in shock and admiration.

"Amazing. I've never actually seen a dragoon up close and personal" she breathed. Her awe and wonder was cut into pieces by the piercing sound of Rose's voice.

"Focus! You haven't the time to be mindlessly gaping, that time would be better spent learning." Lucile dropped her head in shame. Had she already angered her teacher before it even began?

"This is the first step, and as such will be our focus. Now, I want you to try" Rose encouraged.

"But I have no idea how" the blonde women protested. Rose shook her head.

"As I said, your time would be better spent thinking of a solution, rather then worrying about the problem." And with that, Rose said no more, only watched her apprentice closely.

For the next while, Rose wasn't exactly sure how long it had been, but the sun was beginning to grace the midday point, Lucile tried all she could to transform, Rose offering not as much as a word of advice or help. Eventually, she collapsed on the ground in a heap, her body covered in sweat, finding it difficult just to breathe. Rose didn't truly expect her to master the transformation on her own. It was more of a test, to see how she would fair and to gauge what she would and couldn't do in the time they had. Rose had to admit, she had came close to it a couple of time, and judging by what she had just witnessed, she would progress much faster then Zack, despite the obvious head start he had prior to the training.

"Stop. We will take a small break" Rose announced, reverting back to her own human form. Lucile could only nod, finding it too difficult to speak at the moment. The strain her body felt was unlike anything she had ever experienced and she really didn't know if she could cope with any more.

"This admittedly is the hardest part, getting your body and mind to adapt to the taxing strain that is required to transform and hold that transformation." Lucile would laugh if she could. Rose made it all sound so easy, so smooth like it was a walk in the park.

"It almost like building up your muscles for say, running. The first run strains your muscles and leaves you exhausted, but the more you practice, the more your body builds up and manages with the stress. This is the same, all about building. In this case of course, it's your fortitude."

It made perfect sense to Lucile, and in some ways gave her hope. If she could get over this, then the rest should be easy, right?

"Now, drink some water, and let us practice again." A small moan of pretest escaped the martial artist's lips, but heaved herself up for the cooling respite she'd find in the bottle of water she brought with her. "But this time" Rose added. "I'll assist you."

* * *

With long drawn out moan, Zack was able to pull himself away from the world of slumber and join the land of awake and living. His eyes opened on his second attempt, the first an unsuccessful one, his eyes remaining clamped shut as if pegged there. With one of his hands he deftly moved the clunks of black hair, which had now become considerably lighter due to its exposure to the sun, and moved it to the side of his face. He also noticed his hair had not only become lightly, but had grown significantly as well. At times he found himself tying it back to keep it off his face. Sweat rolled off his face, chest and back into a small puddle of sweat around him, earning disgusted moan. _They don't even have fans for the love of god_. After a few moments of idly laying in his bed, he decided it was well and truly time to get himself out of bed. As he effortlessly rolled off the bed, the bright sun caught his attention through the nearby windowsill. Peering out, he was startled to find it looked to be well into the day, as the sun shone high in the sky and the villagers went about there daily rituals while the rest helped with the reconstruction. _Rose will kill me for being up this late _Zack thought dejectedly. She always chastised him for waking up late, telling him it was lost time better spent. He now only seldom missed a sunrise, but in all his time with her the latest she had slept in was her first stay at his house in Fletz, and even then it was only a couple of hours after dawn. Zack had an idea thought that it wasn't that she didn't wake up late, rather, she couldn't. Although he never confronted her about it, Zack was well aware of her insomnia, and didn't think she had a good nights rest in eleven thousand years. With all the burdens she carries though, who could blame her? Zack didn't think he could come close to imagining the dreadful images that flashes through her mind every time she closes his eyes or the nightmares she experiences every time she falls into an uneasy sleep, but he did know one thing. He wouldn't ever want to have those flashes or nightmares, not for all the riches or power in the world. 

Sighing, he exited his room, ready to prepare some sort of excuse to try and appease Rose. He was surprised to find that she was not still in the room (then thought it wasn't all that surprising at all). He glanced over at Lucile's room, and when he saw her vacant room, he knew what the two were doing. _Guess she got her up early _Zack thought sympathetically. _It must be hell for her._

Zack decided rather then staying cooped up in a room, he'd enjoy a bit of fresh air. He had an idea where Rose and Lucile would be training, a wide area where they would not be interrupted. The grasslands east of them would be a perfect location for that of course. But first, he had to do something about his sweat stained clothes and body. Ambling into the bathroom with no real urgency, he washed himself off in the shower, threw on a fresh pair of clothes (in this case a pair of denim blue jeans and a plain white shirt) and exited the Inn, heading towards the grasslands where a faint yet recognizable power source emitted.

* * *

"Again" Rose's voice boomed as she stood with her arms folded, still in her dragoon transformation. Lucile held her hand out in front of her, the silver orb shimmering in her hand as she focused on it, trying to extract the power from the orb and meld her own with it. Rose had gone over the process of transformation with her, describing it as the joining of two energies to create a new one. She was to draw out the dragon's essence within the sphere and merge it with her own life force, triggering the transformation. This of course was much harder in practice, and while she had no problem drawing out the dragon's energy, combining it with her own was a completely different matter. On the first few tries she collapsed at the sheer power of the dragon's spirit that tore through her body as she summoned. Molding it and manipulating the two forces was a task that felt all but impossible. 

"You're taking more then your body can use. You need to control the flow of energy, and use them as the catalyst to transform. Will it, will and bend the spirit's energy to your own and it shall be done." Rose had said. Of course, what she didn't say was the amount of her own force it would take to bend the Dragon's essence.

But with each attempt, she came closer. Now she was on the edge, a mere push away from gaining the transformation. As she focused her will, a silvery light enveloped her body from head to toe and a cocoon like sphere manifested and encased her body. Rose felt the concentration of energy and wondered _perhaps she will do it this time._ Lucile roared, willing herself to pass that threshold that separated herself from man and dragoon, but as she felt her energy serge into an apex, her body beginning to change and morph, it all began to fade, fade until it was no more and she was back to where she started.

"Dammit!" she breathed as she gasped for breath. "So damn close."

"Again" Rose commanded, and this time Lucile couldn't help but object.

"I can't" she stammered. "I just can't."

"Not with that attitude, now try again" Rose enforced with a little more edge in her tone. Lucile got to her feet, and tried the process once again, but only managed to achieve the same result.

Falling back to her knees, a position that was all too familiar now, she seemed to be on her knees after every attempt, she cried out in a huffed voice "See? I told you!"

Zack watched this from behind Lucile, his own arms folded and his brow furrowed in anticipation. He had been able to witness her last transformation effort, and he had to admit he was impressed she had progressed so far in such a short time. But by the looks of it Rose was drilling her hard, a little too hard perhaps.

Rose noticed Zack presence, being too wrapped up in her own ordeals she had failed to detect his him when he first approached. She cursed, telling herself if that was an enemy she could have almost been blindsided.

"We'll take a small break" Rose announced, her body changing back to her normal, humanoid appearance. Lucile could only nod as she fell on her back, watching the moving clouds against the blue backdrop of the sky.

After verifying that Rose had given her time to recess, and he would not interfere, he walked up to Lucile, who looked like she could barely keep her eyes open.

"How are ya?" He asked casually. His figure loomed over her, partially blocking her view of the sky. The women moaned; her hair sprawled all over her perspiring face.

"Feel like hell" she spoke in between deep breaths.

"I bet" he replied, but offered her a smile none the less. She offered him one in return, and wondered afterwards how the act of a simple smile could become so hard.

"Need anything?" he asked politely.

"A hot bath would be nice" she replied warmly. Zack laughed, and she would have too if it didn't require so much effort. After his laughter ceased, she decided on something that may actually help her. "Advice would help" she added.

"Well, I can tell you one thing." His gaze moved over to Rose, who was slowly approaching. "Don't make her mad." Lucile frowned.

"That's it? Nothing about the dragoon transformation?"

"Sorry, but if it's that kind of advice, Rose is the better person to talk to." Lucile let out an exaggerated sigh, to which they both managed to laugh at this time. "Well you're no good then" She replied humorously. Zack winked at her, and decided that she liked Lucile, and would have problem getting along with her as a companion, or a friend. For that he was relieved. His only worry was about the rapport Lucile and Rose would create.

"So your finally up" Rose injected. Zack smiled guiltily.

"Sorry about that. You could have woken me up.' Rose shook her head.

"Lucky for you, you weren't required. If you were, then you can guess how your awakening would be like." Her eyes flashed, and Zack had no problem recollecting one of the ways Rose enforced the notion of 'always be alert, even in sleep.' On one occasion, he woke up to see the steel of Rose's rapier not an inch from his forehead. He cried and scrambled back, shouting as to why the hell she was pointing her sword at his face. She simply replied "To show how easy it would be if I was an assassin to kill you in your sleep." Zack couldn't sleep for days after that event, and even now he fell into a light sleep at best. Well, during most occasions.

Zack gulped, and while Rose's face didn't portray any hint of a smile, her eyes were dancing at the memory.

"This is tough" Lucile broke in. "How did you two ever manage to do it?" Rose and Zack exchanged a quick look, then Zack was the first to reply.

"Well, mine just sort of… happened. I was in a battle, and an explosion of anger kind of... well… called out to it I guess." Zack shrugged.

"Another way to trigger the transformation process is by emotions. A prime example is anger, an emotion which is powerful enough to draw out the energies needed to transform" Rose elaborated. Lucile nodded in understanding. "Admittedly transforming in on a whim is much more difficult then in the heat of battles when emotions are raging and adrenaline is pumping. So when you try next, bringing out certain emotions may help."

"Actually" Zack began, interrupting their conversation. "If Wen was apart of Sandora, then why did he allow a general to have possession of the spirit? Even if he wasn't with them at that stage, he could have easily taken off me, right?"

Rose gave it a thought, before giving the best answer she could think of. "In the end Zack, I don't think he quite anticipated your change of sides. I think he groomed you to be his lieutenant, and assumed it was safe in your possession. At least that's all I can come up with" Rose answered. Zack shrugged. He got it back in the end anyway.

"It's time we got back to training" Rose said, signaling Lucile to get t her feet. Zack nodded, then moved back to where he was before, standing on the grass in observation.

"Hey Rose. You never told me how you learned to transform" Lucile prompted as they began to walk to their positions. Rose looked off towards the endless green that stretched out into the sea, as if unable to answer.

"I was forced to learn. It was a matter of life and death" Rose recalled, remembering the encounter with a group of Winglies. She was the third person in her former group to master the transformation; Zeig and Shirley were her predecessors. "I didn't have the training that I am giving you, nor was I given any time to contemplate it. As soon as I attained it, we were ambushed by a Winglies scout group, forcing me to transform. Not only that but I was also considerably injured." A second question occurred to Lucile.

"How did you find yours?" she asked.

"I got mine after I killed my pet dragon, know as Michael" she answered indifferently, though Lucile notice the momentary hurt that sparked in her eyes.

"A pet dragon?" Lucile wondered with awe. _My god, a dragon as a pet? It's unheard of _she thought. Rose could see the disbelief on her face, and it suddenly occurred to her that Lucile may not know exactly who she was and from what time she hailed from.

"It wasn't so uncommon, not back in the Dragon Campaign." Lucile's eyes bulged at the prospect, her jaw nearly hitting the floor.

"You mean... You're…" She was cut short by an impatient Rose.

"If you finish your training I'll explain, but as for now." Rose paused for a moment, giving a moment for Lucile to anticipate her next words.

"Again." With a sigh, Lucile returned to her position, and once again attempted to reach her goal: To attain the transformation that so far eluded her.

* * *

**Note:** I know this may seem like a sort of filler chapter, but I thought I'd give more insight, as well as my own theory as to how the dragoon transformation is achieved. It looks easy in the game, but I thought in reality it would be a much more complex and enduring process, especially to a novice Dragoon Knight, so I added a little bit more depth to it. Hope it all makes sense! 


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33**

Over the next few days, Rose drilled Lucile vigorously and relentlessly. By the second day Lucile had managed to transcend into her dragoon form, although once achieved mere moments later she changed back, falling on the ground on the verge of unconsciousness. The rest of that day was spent on her recuperation, and the following day she was trained just as hard without exception. From dawn till dusk she trained, from dusk until dawn she slept only to repeat the procedure again. Rose was certainly right about one thing, her sessions had been as hellacious as they had been exhausting.

Lucile did although notice amongst the days of intense training that she was slowly building up considerable endurance. Controlling her spirit's energy became easier and consequently so did her exercises. It wasn't long until Rose put her theoretical training into practice, pitting her against the native marshland monsters that roamed.

"You've been gifted with a different weapon then your fists while transformed" Rose had informed her, pointing to the large white recurve bow that was strung over her back. It was lighter then one would expect, and nearly half of her size. The bow almost gleamed into regard; the front of the silver bow bore two straight thin cylinders a few inches apart, allowing room and allowing greater accuracy when aiming the arrow. The other defining feature of the bow was that a bow string was absent, giving nothing to pull the arrows back on.

"So I gotta supply my own arrows?" Lucile asked with a look of doubt and disappointment on her face. "And where do I draw the arrows on anyway?"

Rose pointed to the front of the bow, where the two aiming cylinders laid. "That is your aim, and the arrows are created by you" Rose explained, noting the identical resemblance to Shirley's bow. "You use your own energy to create an arrow, which can be of two purposes; healing and killing" she explained. "Pulling straight energy and controlling will be another difficult task, and because of that a bow string is not needed, in time you will build your own source of control and will not need any other."

Lucile sighed. She thought the hard part was already done. Rose transformed and flew over to one of the thick trees around fifty meters away and carved a circle with her sword around four inches in diameter.

She flew back, and told her "Once you can hit within the circle I drew on that tree, you have passed your exercise."

"But it's so far away!" Lucile protested hotly. Rose shook her head.

"Once perfected, you will be able to shoot up to kilometers away, so this won't be too difficult" she replied coolly. Giving up on her argument, Lucile concentrated on passing the goal Rose had set for her.

And a goal it was, although one soon realized. At first she found it near impossible to materialize the energy physically, and when she finally did it came in the form of a small, unreformed circle of energy that exploded in her face. The next few tries resulted in the same finish, and as her body began to burn (her face in particular felt like burned rubber) and Rose offered another line of advice.

"Visualize what you want; picture the shape of the energy and it shall be so." Lucile thought to scoff the idea, it sounded like the kind of advice one tells a cook or baker who cannot quite mold their doe when baking a cake or cookies. But she put it into practice, and when she did she was able to create a somewhat ambiguous arrow shaped line, which promptly shattered into an explosion of energy, sending Lucile to the damp ground below. With gritted determination, she persevered.

That victory was short lived when she came up against her second challenge, propelling the arrow forward. Her fest attempt only sent it hurtling roguishly towards the ground a few meters away, and so the next couple of hours were spent perfecting her shot distance and then her accuracy.

But as time went by, improvements become clearly noticeable. It wasn't too long until the distance no longer became an obstacle, and not long after that until even the accuracy became a problem of the past. Upon hitting her target for the first time, a loud thump as the arrow penetrated the ebon bark all but signified her success, she couldn't help but throw her arms up in victory.

"Done it!' she chirped proudly. Rose glanced at the arrow that stood out clearly.

"Again" Rose ordered, making sure it wasn't a fluke. "In the heat of battle, pin point precision is of utmost importance. Do it three more times without faltering, and I'll consider your exercise completed." Lucile agreed, and so she went back to her position, planting her two feet firmly into the ground, her straight feet facing parallel to the left of her body while her body arched into a straight line, the hand holding her bow outright was straight while her other hand summoned her energy into matter, the at first vague circle of white energy straitening into an arrow point as he hand pulled back on an imaginary string. She sighted down her path, closed her right eye and took aim. _Let my aim be true _she thought wistfully as she released the ethereal bow, firing at a speed that even Rose wondered if she could evade. It struck true, shipping half of her former arrow in its wake. Lucile repeated this two more times, her aim never wavering. On the third arrow, a broad smile broke out, her eyes shining at her new found accomplishment.

"You have done well" Rose's voice hollered from behind.

"Thanks" Lucile replied.

"You only have yourself to thank, you did all the work" Rose reassured. "And that" she began, her eyes turning to the darkening sky that was now without a sun for another twenty four hours. "Will conclude our training for this evening." Lucile nodded, and then bowed, a formality Rose wasn't all too content with but one Lucile enforced all the same. She said it was a sign of respect to her masters, and while Rose reminded her she was not her master, Lucile told her firmly that she considered her as such for the duration of their training. Rose simply shrugged in her usual nonchalant manner and continued on with her drilling.

Zack was present for bits and pieces of the training, but after watching her train he took it upon himself to sharpen his own skills, an idea Rose agreed with wholeheartedly, and so when he wasn't observing Lucile or assisting the local reconstruction, his time was spent in the marshlands. Seeing Lucile's determination had given him a newfound sense of purpose, and thought that if she could endure days of hellish drilling then he could as well. The natural wildlife proved to be more then a competent battleground and provided more then enough targets to practice on. But even while he trained relentlessly it didn't have the same clearing of mind effect it had on Rose. The death of his friends and even the betrayal of his former mentor flashes in his mind all too often while he fought, disrupting his focus. It was on more then one occasion that that these disruptions result in injury and in other instances almost resulted in fatality. He tried to clear these thoughts and emotions that have build up over days, but it was no good. In the end it all washed together into one recognizable sensation. Anger, a tool which he used all too often, and was a tool that had got him into even more trouble then it had gotten him out off. He then realized that it was not his anger he was using, more, it was his anger that was using him. He couldn't help how he felt, but upon reflecting the actions he took when he found out Wen was behind the aggression of Sandora and Rose was the Black Monster, he only then started to understand how much of a prisoner to himself he really was. As his spear ripped apart another green skinned swamp gator, he pledged to himself he would better himself, and not just for his comrade's sake, but for his own.

* * *

By the time Rose and Lucile made it back to their room, Zack was already there, leaning against the plastered wall that faced of into the back of hoax, the transparent drapes hung over the near by open window fluttered with the wind. His face was knotted in with a look that resembled deep concentration, his arms folded in a very Rose like fashion. Because of the lack of his usual upbeat welcoming Rose thought he was so deep in a trance he hadn't noticed their arrival. For some reason the site made her instinctively raise her hand to her black rose which sat on the side of her head, an accessory which was all too easily forgotten yet had become as much a part of her as her own beating heart. 

"Welcome back" Zack greeted, his face slowly turning to meet theirs. "Was Rose the same old grouch monster you were telling me about yesterday?" Zack teased. Lucile's face turned to that of alarm as Rose arched her eyebrow slightly, her gaze becoming cold. She glanced between her teacher, and then Zack.

"What… I did no such thing… I didn't say that I swear!' she protested fervently. She set a piercing stare on Zack who laughed mockingly, and as he did she pouted. Rose had gathered that between the two they had made up a game of who could land the other in the most trouble, and while most of it was nothing more then mischievous pranks of false embarrassments or comments, Zack took particular exception to this, and as far as she could tell were gaining the better of the ordeal. It was a childish game of course, but when the two got together, it really reminded them that in a sense, they were nothing more _then_ children. The two created a somewhat innocent yet juvenile relationship, almost like Zack found a play mate of some kind. She thought it would do him well perhaps, as long as it didn't dull his senses or resolve.

Lucile's eyes lit up as a smile began to surface, an impish smile that spoke of childish malevolence.

"Well!" she began, placing her hands on her hips. "Since we're so open and honest, how about I make public who you were murmuring about in you sleep. Zack's laughing halted and his eyes showed confusing. She turned around and held her own gaze on Rose, before returning it to Zack. Zack knew immediately who she was pointing at, and while he didn't know if she was still just jesting or not, it had left a seed of doubt, and once he glanced at Rose, he knew it did in her too. Was she trying to get him back or did she actually hear it?

She laughed merrily, slapping him on the shoulder. "Loosen up soldier, I was only kidding around." But it did little to ease the sudden tension that had grown. _Was she really kidding?" he thought. _A thought that crossed both of their minds.

"How was training?" Zack asked, changing the subject. Lucile held both of her arms outright, showing various burses and cuts, along with noticeable swelling on her palms and fingers. "Hard as usual" she answered. "But I did learn how to use my bow, so I am making progress. Better be careful, soon I'll surpass even you" she winked playfully. Zack smiled at her response.

"Wouldn't worry about that. You're still just a novice" he replied offhandedly. Competition was another trait that both shared. To Rose they began to sound like bickering siblings.

"You're both still beginners" Rose broke in. "And I think I may tell you both in advance, tomorrow noon I will have a task for you, a task that will involve both of you" Rose made clear, eyeing the two of them. "So be ready, because this challenge will not be easy."

And an easy challenge it wasn't, and it caught the pair of guard. Lucile spent the following day perfecting her shooting on monsters, while Zack done the same. Lucile was able to slip into and out of transformation with much more ease, and was now able to do it usually on her first attempt. Slaying the monsters proved to be not to be too much harder.

As promised, the following afternoon Rose rallied her two companions into the grassy lands outside Hoax. They both wondered what their task would be, especially Zack who was surprised he still had any more to complete.

"Now, I hope your both ready. Your next task will quite simply be a duel" Rose informed placidly. Zack and Lucile looked at each other, Zack's eyes gleaming.

"Looks like it time to show you what's what eh?" Zack taunted. Lucile smiled back in kind.

"I won't be as easy as you think."

Rose shook her head, signaling them both to attention. "I said you'd be dueling, but I never said against each other" Rose started to explain. The two of them looked at her in puzzlement, waiting eagerly for the rest of the explanation.

"Your target will be me" she spoke with the same steadiness, slowly drawing her sword. 'Your aim will be to lay one clear blow on me, without me parrying or otherwise evading it. I will only attack in defense."

"What? You can't expect us to do that" they both objected.

"Teamwork is an important aspect of battle, sometimes the most important. Despite how great your individual skills are, from what time has taught me, you will need to rely on another at some time. A close understanding of teamwork and tactics is what will be required here, and neither of you shall be leaving until you figure out how to hit me." Rose spoke this with a sense of edginess, making clear of her expectations. "Hold nothing back."

Zack thought to argue further, but knew it would end up pointless. If this is what she wanted, then there is little chance of changing it.

"Alright, let's show her how far we've grown" Lucile told him. Zack nodded, and Rose walked a few feet away, standing in the fields in her battle position.

"What if we injure you though?' Zack shouted to her. "And do we transform?"

"If you're that worried, use the blunt end of your spear, and as for dragoon transformation, it's up to you." Zack nodded in comprehension.

"Here goes. I'll attack first, you try finding some opening to sneak around and flank her" Zack planned quietly so Rose couldn't hear. The blonde apprentice agreed, and with that Zack charged forwards, the swooping winds blowing against his body as his feet thudded against the floor.

Rose braced herself, placing her right leg behind her for stability and support, using her left leg as a means of mobility if she suddenly needed to shift positions or sprint forward. Zack approached her with considerable velocity, the back of his bark coloured pole arm arching in a diagonal swing as it came downwards towards Rose's midsection. She parried it with ease, her sword clanging against the hard wood. Zack moved back, disengaging momentarily before he tried another swift, overhead strike, which was dodged by Rose who moved her head out of the way with an ease that made it look all too easy.

Lucile meanwhile had crept up from the side, looking for an opening as Zack continued the offensive onslaught. Rose evaded, rolled and deflected all his attempts, all the while taunting him. It wasn't until a particularly powerful blow from Zack that caused Rose to stagger backwards despite her strength that she found an opening she thought she could take advantage of. Dashing behind her as fast as she could, the white warrior pulled her arm back, reading to deal a blow from behind. The Rogue marital arts were centered on discipline, endurance and exposure. Always analyze the opponent, and then expose any weakness.

In spite of her impressive cunning, by the time she was close enough to even think about releasing her coiled hand she intended to land, Rose block another strike by Zack, pushed him backwards then whirled around behind her to where Lucile was waiting and drove and elbow into her gut, dropping her to her knees. In all her training, it was one thing that always killed a person: Lack of preparation. If she had braced herself for such a maneuver, then the impact wouldn't have been so devastating, but apparently she had been overconfident. Rose rolled away from the two, and Zack went to aid Lucile, who got to her feet, still feeling winded.

"You okay?" he asked almost breathlessly. His eyes moved to Rose, her figure back in its battle stance, eagerly awaiting the next barrage.

"Her quickness is unreal" Lucile breathed. "Not only that, but look at her, she hasn't even broke a sweat. It's as if this is all too easy for her."

"This _is _too easy for her" Zack voiced, noticing Rose's uninterested gaze.

"You need to attack as a team, not as two individuals" Rose advised. "Now come, you can do better then this."

"I'm going to take time to analyze her attack and defensive patterns, to try and find a routine. All fighters usually have a specific form of attack or defense they rely on, and once learned, can be exploited. I need you to engage in her, baiting her into defending while I study her combat movements." Lucile requested.

"Good idea" Zack agreed. He rushed forward once again, while Lucile remained behind, studying her every movement. Through the series of attacks Zack attempted, she began to see a habit in her actions, predominantly in her footwork. While she gracefully parried and dodged, which in time almost appeared to be a serene dance under an unheard melody, she could see her feet was the key to her evasive movements.

"To me!" She cried. Zack rolled back, disengaging and ran back towards Lucile.

"Got it?" Zack panted, his face and back covered in perpetration. Rose still hadn't dropped a bead of sweat from what he could tell.

"Yes I have. I need you to drive her to her back foot, where next she will evade, leaving a few seconds of vulnerability. It's then I will strike. She will most likely dodge the attack as well, by what we've seen her reflexes are lightening quick, but she will be forced to do so by either rolling or jumping out of the way, and after that it will be your que to land the final blow." Zack nodded in agreement.

"Okay, let's make it happen" Lucile encouraged. They both slowly stalked up to Rose, their movements slow but deliberate, almost like two sharks circling their pray. Rose's eyes flashed with anticipation, decidedly taking interest.

"Go" Lucile spoke lowly, and Zack once again charged, hitting with hard strikes that forced her on her back leg. At that point Zack could foresee the next evasion, and cleaved horizontally with all his might, the force of the slice too powerful for her blade to simply block. Nimbly, Rose jump backwards away from the strike, the end of the spear making a swoosh sound as it cut through the air. As soon as she landed on her feet, Lucile uncoiled, jumping from her position which was behind Rose, letting loose a powerful kick aimed at the side of her chest. Rose picked this up with her honed peripheral, and later though had she seen it a mere second later, the duel would have ended right there and then.

But her age old experience could not be denied, and even with the short few seconds warning she had, she pulled off one of the most impressive evasive maneuvers either one of them had seen given few seconds she had to react. As the kick hurled towards her, she arched her back backwards, falling back until she planted her palms behind her, creating a human bridge. The kick flew above her, and before Lucile had a chance to unleash a second assault Rose pushed backwards on her hands, balancing her frame vertically creating a momentary handstand before flipping off and landing back on her feet with remarkable flexibility. But as incredible as it was, the stunt caused her to lose important thing that would take her a few vital seconds to regain: knowledge of her now changed surroundings.

Given other circumstances, Lucile would have been awe inspired by the way Rose was able to use her body to evade a seemingly unavoidable kick. But she hadn't the time, and while her teacher was momentarily defenseless, she had to act.

"Zack, now!" she barked. Zack strode in and with a grunt his spear shot out, straight towards Rose's abdomen. _Shit, I can't dodge it! _Rose could do the only thing her reflex would allow. She shot out her hand and wrapped it around the end of the back of the spear that Zack drove into her in hopes she could stop the impact by brute force alone.

She gained marginal success, and with all her strength, she moved her body back with the momentum of the thrust, planting her back heel into the ground for added support. With one hand wrapped around the blunt spear, it rested only an inch from Rose's lower stomach, her hand the only thing impeding the otherwise surefire strike.

With a groan, Zack tried all he could to push his weapon that bit further, but as strong as he was with too hands she could match it with just one. Sweat now showed as the sunlight beamed with Rose's tug-of-war like struggle, her hand threatening to give out at any moment. Although she was strong, Zack did hold the strength advantage over her, her fueled adrenaline the only thing allowing her to contend. But it was slipping away, and as her hand quivered with the pressure she could no longer sustain. Rose turned her head abruptly to spot Lucile gliding towards her, ready to deliver another devastating punch. With one hand on Zack's pole arm and the other on her sword, the blonde warrior's eyes gleamed as she readied herself to end the duel emphatically.

But again to no avail, and as Lucile got in range, Rose sidestepped, and with her remaining strength she pulled the spear towards the incoming Lucile, the momentum and the added force of Rose proving to much for Zack to halt. Lucile managed to move out of the way of the lance as it snapped into the ground, driving Zack to one knee, but the cost of the evasion was the loss of her advantage and by the time Lucile regained her composure Rose had gained several crucial meters distance.

"Better, much better" Rose coaxed, even her voice now sounding rugged with hints of fatigue.

Zack rose back to his feet and walked towards Lucile, who bashed her fist into the ground in frustration. "So close!" she cried exasperated. Zack motioned her attention, his face calm and collected.

"Gotta keep focused, and not let your emotions get the best of you, ya know? If I've learned anything during my time with Rose, it's that every one has a weakness, everyone makes mistakes, and if you keep a cool head you can persevere."

"… You're right" she agreed, getting herself back into a fighting stance.

"I have an idea this time" Zack began, pressing his head close to Lucile's to keep confidentiality. "I need you to transform, if you can, and barrage her from a range while I get up front and try to pin her down. I've seen the speed of your arrows, and if we work together we can definitely hit her. She may be fast, but even she has her limits."

Lucile eyed him in a kind of profound wonder. At a glance she once thought he was just a brawny brawler whose strategic aptitude only went as far as knowing how to swing a weapon. She knew Rose was the brains between the two, and while that may hold true to a degree, she had grossly underestimated his own capability. While his fighting style was that of an in your face brawler, he held an overall cleverness that would catch many off guard, and as a person she learned behind the joke and comedic gags, there was a thoughtful, contemplative persona that he much kept to himself.

"Alright, I'll try" she said, her tone portraying a slight doubt that inside she felt tenfold. Closing her eyes and focusing, she went over the strategy she had gained while going over the countless exercises with Rose. She felt the harmonic energy begin to glisten from within her, before it exploded; a flash of light streamed down her body, only leaving a silver silhouette that slowly began to change and mold as wings sprouted and the armor began to materialize. The ambiguous light then vanished, leaving in its wake a newly transformed Lucile, holding her newly acquired bow. Rose's expression turned to that of baleful amusement.

"It was easier then expected" she stuttered.

"In battle it always is" Zack replied calmly. "Now, will you be able to hold back on the energy of your arrows? We don't want to actually injure her after all, although at times it's tempting" Zack asked humorously, chuckling a little.

"Your humor really never ceases, does it? And no, I intend to create a kind of blunt arrow, that if it hits shouldn't create any penetration. Although the likely effects will be a small explosion when it contacts."

"Alright, I'll keep her occupied while you try and hit her. Lets make it happen" Zack cheered as he prepared another charge.

As Zack shot off, she stretched out her bow and focused her left arm, the fingers feeling tingly as a thin bright cylinder formed, resembling the body of an arrow but without a head. She used the least amount of energy she could, although her control over it wouldn't be anything to that of Zack or Rose, she was still new to it after all. Closing one eye, she aimed down her bow and sighted Rose, waiting for an opportune moment to strike.

But as always, this idea sounded brilliant in theory but was much more difficult to accomplish in practice. Despite the numerous openings (what Lucile interpreted as openings anyway, she later thought they may have been false ones for her to step into) she could not land a single shot. Between the avoidance of Zack's strikes and her own arrows, which blasted at speeds she thought unavoidable, she began to understand why they weren't succeeding. It wasn't so much her speed, which while was remarkable, wasn't the sole cause of her ability to evade. It was her anticipation, her ability to read movements almost before they were made. It was almost like she knew what they were doing before even they did. She analyzed every move and countered it based on those assumptions. Eleven thousand years must do that she Lucile thought absently, before she tried to shoot again. Before she could however she was struck by a wave of tire, her vision began to slowly blur as the sides of hey eyes almost completely shrouded in a blanket of fog.

_I'm reaching my limit _the silver warrior thought wearily. She found it hard to keep the weight of her bow aloft, and she didn't know if she could summon another bolt. She thought she could pull it off if she willed herself to, but it would be the last one. This one had to hit, it was now or never.

Rose was still occupied with a persistent Zack, his eyes constantly switching between her and his companion behind him. Although she didn't show it in her movements, even she was beginning to feel taxed as the battle progressed and the duel had gone far beyond simple amusement for her now. _They're going to get me if this keeps up _Rose thought calmly, using the face of her blade to deflect Zack's spear, quickly driving her boot into his stomach as he stumbled back momentarily off balance. _Perhaps I better transform._

Zack got back to his feet nearly as quickly as he was knocked down. Rose had to admit, he was a sturdy fellow, and he was never off his feet for long. His eyes began to gleam, a smile cross his face. He cast away his weapon, making a sound as it contacted the grass it fell on.

"Lucile, be ready!' Zack warned, charging once more bare handed. Rose was momentarily taken aback by his choice of actions, and before she could try to figure out what in the hells he was attempting, he had already accomplished it. He lunged at her, hands agape as he wrapped her in a bear hug, holding her in her position. Silkily, he pivoted his body behind her, as if to use her as a shield, his arms the only visible body part in front of her, crushing her chest and body to his. She quietly reprimanded herself for her lack of response, as unorthodox as it was. But not only that, she scolded herself for suddenly being so self conscious of where his arms now rested.

"Lucile now!" he roared, holding her with all his strength. He made sure to pin her shoulders to her sides, eliminating their use form the equation. Lucile saw the opportunity and hazy sight or not, she closed one eye, sighted her target, and began to beckon the dragoon's energy.

As a stroke of bad lucky, while she summoned she lost control, today's practice and the strain of the battle proving too much for her novice abilities to cope with. It gathered with sparkling rays, the energy becoming much more abundant then she had intended.

_Shit, if I don't get rid of it it's going to keep building until it explodes!_

Rose looked on, and immediately sensed the heightened energy. "Either she plans to kill us, or she's losing control of her abilities" Rose stated, even Zack now looking on with unease. But before either of them could contemplate any further, Lucile released the large energy bomb, for it was not really an arrow, and it hurled forward in their general direction. It made a low buzzing sound as it past the two, colliding with the ground behind them a few feet away.

It exploded as expected, bits of grass and pieces of large dirt hurling in all directions. This didn't manage to hit either Zack or Rose, but the consequent shockwave did. It knocked them off their feet, Rose particularly getting the worse end as she toppled to the ground. Thick gray smoke blanketed the two, making all vision any more then a few inches in front of them clouded and obscured, almost blinding save for the faint silhouette Rose could make out. She got on one knee promptly, her eyes focusing as she tried to make out where her aggressors where. She supposed that the smoked battlefield would suit her more then anything, so she had little to be worried about. But she had something to be worried about. She lost Zack, and while it was likely he was in the same predicament she was, or perhaps he retreated away from the smoke to regroup, there was always the off chance he was looking for- her thoughts was cut to pieces when she felt something hard and firm press across her back, starting in the middle of her shoulder blades, ending near the side of her waste. She knew who it was immediately, and knew that the battle had now come to a close. She turned her head slightly, and as the smoke evaporated, she could her black haired perpetrator, smiling in all his glory, the hard object pressed against her back being the end of his spear had had somehow regained during the fog.

"Looks like we finally win" he spoke with half pride, half relief. "Bet ya didn't expect it eh?"

And he was right. She didn't think he was able to conjure up such guile, and was thoroughly impressed that he had. He was able to adept after all, albeit a little slowly.

"Well done" she commended. "You have passed the final test. For both of you" she glanced over a Lucile, who was already back into her human state and on her hands and knees breathing heavily.

Lucile raised her head at Zack and gave him a lazy thumb up, before she collapsed into the ground, not quite unconscious, but getting close.

"We better check to see if she is okay" Zack said with a hint of worry. She had certainly over exerted herself, it was really any wonder she went on as long as she did.

By the time the duo got to her, she was able to get herself into a sit up position. A remarkable recover, partly because of her training and youthful fitness Rose assumed.

"So we're done, we're finished." Lucile breathed out softly. Zack nodded, congratulating her on her initiation while Rose looked off far into the east. She had been pondering her next move for the last day, and all things considered, she had come to a decision. One that would perhaps either kill them or save them. But the other two wouldn't know that yet and perhaps that was for the better.

"There maybe one more test for you yet" Rose announced, her regard now firmly on an exhausted Lucile. Her eyes widened in surprise.

"But, you said this was the final test. What else can you test me on?" she tried to yell, but was unable to, instead it came out in short, huffed breaths.

"It is not I who will be testing, nor will be the tester." She replied indifferently. This now caught even Zack's full attention.

"Then… who?" Lucile finally asked. A brief silence passed as Rose made the final considerations before deciding to go through with it.

"Shirley."

* * *

**Note: **Sorry for the long update, uni is taking chunks out of my time so I am finding it hard to get a chance to sit down and get a good session of writing in. On the upside, it's a long chapter with what I hope is a well written battle. I apologize if any parts appear vague or ambiguous, but it's rather difficult to transfer the skirmish I have envisioned in my head and putting into words. Anyhow, hope you enjoyed the chapter ). 

Oh, and 100,000 words, yay!

Michael.


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34**

"Shirley?" Lucile replied in puzzlement. She had heard the name been thrown around before, but knew not the meaning of it, or who the name belonged too. Zack however did, and he looked at her with strong, concentrated eyes.

"Isn't she dead?" he asked calmly, although he began to worry as to how Rose thought otherwise. She nodded, as if the fact of her being dead amounted to nothing. In a sense, it really didn't.

"She is dead, certainly, although her spirit still lingers in a shrine, a shrine dedicated to her in fact" Rose explained casually. "Her shrine is located south west of Lohan, up yonder volcano" she pointed. Zack looked at her doubtfully.

"We're going to go all the way up and beyond, just to see a dead spirit for some test?" Zack asked, not entirely able to keep the resentment of the idea out of his tone. It was Rose's turn to be perplexed, looking at him in wonder as to why he rebuked the idea.

"You have a better one then?" she replied

"Well, yes, certainly better then wasting out time and letting Wen amass an even larger force. I say we attack him where it hurts, his support, his allies, his supplies" Zack protested hotly. Rose slowly shook her head, almost in a patronizing way a mother does to try and calm their scream child.

"You're not seeing the bigger picture. We are in the middle of enemy territory, he knows where we are, they have the numbers, and if they amassed a large enough force they could wipe us all out" Rose elaborated.

"So hiding like cowards and letting a spirit test us will do us that much more?" Zack half shouted. "All we'd be doing is allowing them to amass the necessary army, and eventually they will corner us. Then what?"

"We are not hiding, only taking refuge to give us time to think and plan" Rose continued, ignoring his rising anger. "Attacking head on will do nothing Zack; let us not forget we hold the one thing that he holds with the most importance: the Dragoon Spirit's. As long as he stay in possession of them, we will hold the advantage, and there is now way I'm letting any of us run in and lose them carelessly. There is a fine line between bravery and stupidity."

Zack signed in resignation, adding no more to the debate. "Have it your way then, but we will have to press some sort of offense eventually, we can't 'take refuge' forever."

"We will, as soon as we find a way we can that won't result in capture. Now let us rest for tonight, tomorrow we begin our travels." Zack spoke no more, only made his way back towards Hoax and into the Inn. Lucile walked behind them, not knowing what to say after their dispute. But a question did rise to her head, one she couldn't help but ask.

"Who is Shirley?"

No one answered right away, and just when she thought she would receive no such answer, Rose began to tell a somewhat shortened version of the story she told Zack. It neglected several key parts, but Lucile didn't need to know anything beyond that they were good friends, they fought together once and she then died, now watching over a particular shrine. Lucile could guess there was more history then she led on too, a great deal more then even Zack would know, but she was satisfied with her response.

When they got back to the Inn, Zack voiced his final displeasure towards Rose's plan.

"Are you sure this is okay?" he asked, his tone completely clam as opposed to his earlier anger. She looked at him sternly, her gaze never faltering, but neither was his. He had never questioned her judgment in the past, as far as he knew she was the be all and end all, but this felt like… they were just running away. They had chipped away at Sandora for the last few weeks, and as far as he thought they had the physiological edge, thwarting Wen's every attempt to recapture his precious spirits. He had been successful in capturing his own spirit, but sometimes you had to lose some to win some. They already lost so much to get to this point, why waste it by running and giving the enemy time to breathe?

"Zack, have I let you down as of yet?" Rose questioned firmly, ripping Zack out of his internal conflict.

"No… you have not" he replied with the tone almost devoid of all his usual burning vitality. Almost a reflection of her own tone she thought somberly. A tone that may become a regularity if such conflicts continue to tear away his innocence.

"Have any of my choices turned out ill or misjudged?" She asked again. He replied in much the same way he had the previous question.

"Have any of my decisions so far given Wen or Sandora for that matter the upper hand in this struggle?"

"No" he replied for the third time. Rose nodded in some form of agreement, even though there seemed to be nothing she had to agree too.

"Then trust me, just as you have done in the past" Rose spoke with a softer tone then Zack was used too. Not only that, her eyes softened as well, her icy cobalt eyes seeming to beg for his faith. Zack sighed and agreed, reserving judgment in way for his leaders'.

"Very well, you win" he spoke defeated. "I'm surprised you don't just send me on my merry way" he spoke almost in good humor.

"_Sometimes_" she began, pacing off towards her room. "I wonder if that would be easier." She said it with obvious sarcasm, which for a second time left him in a state of surprise. As he had soon learned, humor was a trait Rose exhibited rarely at best. He could count the amount of times Rose displayed such witty behavior with the fingers on one hand. Despite himself, it did put a smile on his face, and while no more words where spoken between them, another one of those mutual, non verbal acknowledgements that always seemed to dissolve any former complications that plagued them passed, echoing whispers of new hope and a vibe of optimism.

* * *

The next day, when the sun wasn't quite past the horizon yet, the trio was packed and ready to go, their next endeavor waiting to be embarked.

"At least we won't have to keep emptying our pockets for that ridiculous pricing on the rooms" Zack almost yawned out as they left the Inn.

"But now we'll be reduced to sleeping beds" Lucile replied unhappily. "If there's one thing I can never get enough of, it's a good, firm bed to sleep in."

"You'll get used to it toots" Zack responded casually. "By the end of a good, hard day of hiking a large, molten mountain, anything that even closely resembles a bed will look like heaven."

Rose kept to herself, as she usually did when the other two got lost in a string of pointless chatter. And pointless was what it almost always was or inevitably turned into, much to Rose's distain. She didn't bother scolding either of them for it; she knew it would do no good. Their nature was to talk, and as meaningless as the conversation was or was apt to turn into, it did give herself a break from copping the brunt of Zack's unceasing mouth. In that respect, Lucile was a godsend.

"So the Villude is still an active volcano, right?" Zack verified.

"Correct" Rose answered absently, turning her head slightly to allow her words to pass the couple of meters gap that was between herself and her two companions. Leading as always, Rose told them to pick up their pace. They still had a journey to go through, and as she constantly reminded, the quicker it was done, the better.

"She appears grumpy this morning" Lucile whispered to Zack, who were now walking side by side.

"This is her on a good day, you ain't seen nothing yet" Zack whispered back to her. Lucile made an audible gulp, and when she glanced at Rose who had had her back to them, she was surprised to see her head turned towards them, her eyes leering.

"If you don't keep your mouths shut, then you really will see 'that' side of me" she grumbled, although her pace never faltered. Lucile in particular recoiled, the venom in her tone could scare even the most sturdiest of men she thought. _Curse her sharp ears._

"Rosie, relax a little will ya? She's only new and the way you're acting you're going to scare our new friend away." Lucile pouted, glaring angrily towards Zack.

"Don't start Zack, or you'll find yourself tossed into the fiery depths of the mountain" Rose warned, this time no hint of humor was evident. Zack didn't say any more about the subject, and while he found himself believing that Rose had no real intention of carrying out the threats she laid down, apart of him always wondered, which almost caused him to shiver.

Their journey towards the base of the large volcano held nothing eventful, other then the random encounters with the marshland fauna that haplessly got in their way. The dense marshes that stretched out across the large roots of ageless trees that paved their way forward was no enjoyable experience. On the contrary, it proved to be as pleasant as walking through a farm full of cow shit, which is what it felt like to Zack as his feet were submerged in angle deep muck, which hampered their progress considerably.

And to top it all off, even with the dense thickets of croppy overgrowth that covered most of what was above them, the sun seeped in mercilessly through the gaps and other openings that would allow, creating an incredibly humid atmosphere. It seemed that the act of simply breathing caused the trio to perspire.

"This place is hell" Zack expressed with disgust. The other two didn't bother to reply, they both knew how bad it was, and to openly express that in their eyes was an act of stating the all too obvious.

"Wait until we hit the volcano" Rose remarked offhandedly. Her attention was set however on the intersection that lay before them. To their immediate west was their destination, which they would have to travel over deadened trees and shrubs overlaying a gushing gully which's stench could be smelled from the eroding land above it which they now stood on. Further north into the marshlands, which is where Rose's gaze was set at, led to the Seventh Fort of Basil, a place where when she had last visited they had narrowly missed the devastating impact of Feybrand, the green tusked dragon that's poison was potent enough to kill even the strongest of monsters.

"You alright?" Zack asked as stopped his movements, not sure where to go. Rose nodded, although she stood idle for a few moments longer as the memories flooded back into her mind.

"It's nothing" Rose waved off, her voice sounding distant, even to Zack's ears. He waited a few moments longer, clasping his hand over her shoulder. The physical contact almost startled her out of her trance, her shoulder naturally recoiling defensively before her mind could register what was happening.

"Rose?" he asked again with some concern, his eyes narrowing into a calculating, piercing stare. _The one that never fails to unnerve me _She thought. She moved forward, striding away from his scrutinizing, watchful eyes and began to climb the large, broken limbs of age old trees that provided passage over the stream.

"Anything you want to share with us?" he questioned before she walked too far.

"I think this tale is best left to be told over a camp fire. We have neither the time, nor the environment to be sharing tales, and unless you want to camp out in this muck I suggest we get a move on. Every moment wasted is a moment that could be spent on precious progress." She made sure to pontificate the _precious _and the _progress_, a line which she had dropped on him many times before.

Lucile looked on as nothing more then an observer, which she found herself doing the most. She began to feel like the third wheel, so to speak. She had no real knowledge outside what she knew over the last few days of her companions, and while she was sure they were trustworthy, there was a lot she didn't know. It was best described as being brought into a foreign family, adopted one might say. You may get on with the mother and brother, but there are a lot of inside conversations the mother and brother hold, a deep bond that ties them closer and makes you feel on the outer. But she had a job to do, a job which she now has the necessary power to accomplish. As cliché as the saving the world notion may be, she was ready to dedicate her heart, body and soul towards it, and if you could give that for any cause, cliché or not, it was one worth having.

"Is she always so regimented?" Lucile whispered to Zack. She may not hold the on and off yet deeper then they know report that Zack and Rose held with each other, but it didn't mean she couldn't establish her own connections with the two. And to do that, she had to know. The only problem with that, especially in relation to Rose, was once one question was answered, one hundred more arose.

"That is her in a nutshell. From what I've gathered, most of her life has been regimented" Zack replied seriously. "It's the way she is, not a move is wasted with her, and not a pointless word is muttered. But I do have a theory" Zack began, slowly trailing off as the two continued to move forward. Just as Lucile thought she'd have to prompt him to continue, he finished: "As sour and bitter she may be on the outside, her center is full of chewy, mouth watering sweetness."

Lucile chuckled at his bizarre analogy. "So Rose is a piece of sweet candy with a sour shell huh?" she laughed. Zack frowned.

"Hey, I'm serious you know!" Lucile didn't reply, only continued to giggle, teasing him as she went. She had no doubt that her shell was bitter and sour, and that she had a much different center. However, what was in her center, her essence, her soul, well, she had a feeling it had nothing to do with sweetness, not in the least.

* * *

After what seemed like an eternity of hiking, at least that's what it felt like to Zack and Lucile, the threesome managed to climb to the apex of the marshlands, which bleeds out into the slope leading to the large volcanic structure itself. Upon setting foot on the hardened marsh (which was met with warm welcomes from the soles of their shoes) Lucile doubled over, her body shuddering with coughs and splutters.

"Are you alright?" Zack asked alarmed. As she continued to heave, Zack began to bash lightly on her back, like a mother does to a full baby, all the while using his other hand to stabilize her.

"The… air" she chocked out. Zack looked around, surveying his new surroundings. They stood on a large mud trail which led towards the base of the Villude. To their left, the ground slowly eroded into the stream gushing down below them. He could see a dense mist which seemed to be only radiating from this particular area.

"What do you think?" Zack asked Rose, Lucile's coughs slowly subsiding into stable rasps for air. Rose herself looked around, noting to the left of them suspended over the stream was a large, green moss covered trunk that almost resembled a brain with four tentacles coming out of the sides of it.

"Poison?" Zack asked. She shook her head. "We'd all be affected if that was the case. But… there is something in this fog; pollen of some kind would be my guess. It may be lungs aren't adapted to the thick air places like these give off. Or it could be her body is allergic to something within the mist." Rose shrugged, as if it was no big deal. Then out of nowhere, the memory of Shana falling victim to Feybrand's poison struck her with a clarity so crystal clear it scared her. "Let's keep on moving, we'll be out soon anyway, and the sooner the better" Rose encouraged a little shakily. She did not wanting to spend any more time here then absolutely necessary. They both agreed, and began to make their way onward.

Before they left this part of the trail behind however Zack took a final look at the giant… plant, for lack of a better term Zack thought, the trunk like roots stemming from the brain shaped center. It almost looked alive, so alive Zack was sure it would spring to life and attack them at any minute. But of course it didn't, it just remained motionless, threatening only to Zack and his over imaginative mind. _Get a hold of yourself _he scolded before continuing with his other two companions.

As the group departed the forestry swamp, they are greeted with the hot breeze, hailing down from the volcano above them. It wasn't long into their climb up the towering mountain that they stood on a surface mainly consisted of petrified volcanic rock, sizzling their feet inside their boots. The entrance to the brimstone peak could be seen, although they didn't actually enter from the peak, but rather just below, where the charred hardened rocks provided safe passage (at least as safe as can be when venturing through an active volcano). Before Rose entered through the cave like opening, she stopped, looked at the darkened sky, slightly obstructed by the grey smoke the peak discharged, and considered.

"We probably need to rest, we're been traveling for nearly two days, but we'll have to wait until we clear the Villude before we can. I don't know about you two, but there's something that makes me feel slightly unnerved about camping out under or in inside an active volcano." Zack chuckled. He seemed to laugh even more so when worn-out, if that was at all possible.

"There's some of that rare to see humor of yours eh?" Zack quipped. Rose scowled.

"There was nothing to take lightly in my statement." Zack knew this, and whether she was just covering up her occasional jest or it just came happen to come out that way, Zack left the subject alone. They still had a good day or two hike around a lava filled mountain, and that was considering if all went well, which most likely they wouldn't. Yes, energy was much needed reserved and even things like talking required energy which could be better spent.

* * *

Back at the entrance to the marshlands, right at the very intersection that separated the path from the fort and the volcano which Rose's troupe had been standing not too long ago, a band of grey marauders stood, their bodies covered entirely by dark grey leather, even their faces. About a dozen in totality, one stood forward, hunkering down on his knees, deftly picking up a piece of muddy dirt and examining it closely.

"They've been here" he replied, his sword jingling slightly from behind him, resting across his left shoulder and exiting just past his right hip. The rest of them had sheathed weapons too, never too far out of arms reach to draw if a situation should warrant.

"They only have a few hours on us, a day at most." This was met with a unified, silent nod. All that could been seen was their eyes, their faces shrouded by a matching coloured mask that each held a number starting from zero to eleven. No other distinct features were visible.

"Alright, let's move on" he commanded, and just as quick as they appeared, they moved off, following the path of Rose, Zack and Lucile.

* * *

"By the gods, this place really _is _hell. I take back my former response" Zack shrilled.

"Quit being a baby, is complain all you can do?" Lucile snapped. She was not in a good mood to say the very least. She had undergone tough training before, but after nearly two days of trudging through swamps, climbing mountains and now trekking around a steaming volcano, well, it certainly dampers ones disposition

"Let us not waste energy on bickering; it would be much better spent on getting through this mountain. I am going to get through this as briskly as caution will allow, and not a second longer. I trust I do not need to go through the risk of us being here." Zack felt a hot reply come to his lips, to tell her that it was her idea to be here in the first place, but what good would that do? They were here, and it was that they had to worry about now.

A fresh cloud of hot vapor clouded them, making their skin almost feel like it was on fire. They stood on a solid ledge, hardened volcanic rock that had been created over years. Several other scorched mounds and ridges coursed around them, all various shapes and sizes, but only one clear cut route led around the volcano that otherwise couldn't lead to an untimely plummet to the boiling surface below. Conveniently, the outside cliffs were just high enough to avoid the fatal steam below; although Zack and Lucile thought they'd still end up with a body full of blisters once they got out. The center considered of streaming magma, and what wasn't flowing magma was hot molten rock with air pockets that shot out blistering steam on regular intervals.

"As you can see, there are certain places that will require us to jump or otherwise ledge hop. Try not to miss calculate, I really don't a charred body on our hands" Rose warned dryly.

Suddenly a loud, piercing screech came form somewhere towards the center of the pit. The smoke made it made it almost impossible to see any considerable distance, but Rose knew that sound very well. It sounded off again, this time Lucile placed one hand over the ear facing the closest to the scream.

Rose's face turned to that of concern, alerting Zack immediately.

"I know that face. There's trouble about, isn't there?"

"Big trouble" Rose replied sternly. The shrieking sound that resembled that of a bird rang out again, only this time marginally closer.

"Run!" Rose commanded. Zack turned to question why, or perhaps what it was they were going to run from, but before he could Rose was already afoot, dashing around the Villude's circumference.

"Hurry" Zack cried as him and Lucile followed, jumping over pillars as they came and entering deeper into the cavern.

The air had become even more searing, although the trio had little time to notice. A lot of hardened rock had settled above them, creating a kind of fabricated roof. The outside of the path was mostly obstructed by sharp piles of triangular rock, which was a good thing Rose thought, for it acted as a sort of rail as to prevent them from falling off the more freely flowing magma that would surely consume them below.

"Keep up!" Rose cried as she ran across a small unsupported rock bridge, that fumes from the lava below burning her face and skin. The other two followed in suite, not daring to slow or stop in their pursuit.

They exited the more grotto like area and once again emerged into a more open wholeness. There were two parallel paths on both sides of the narrow trail that continued to circle around the volcano's parameter. "There's a jump ahead! We need to switch ledges so we can access the left exit of this area!" Rose cautioned. But before they could reach the small ridge, the red hot lava that flowed threw the valley under them erupted. None of the exploded magma came in contact with any of the three, but what was in front of them now proved far more threatening.

"Is this what we were running from?" Zack questioned as he caught up to Rose, looking at the large flame filled phoenix in front of them. It spread its magnificent fiery wings and squawked another time.

_What the? That kind of quickness isn't possible. Unless – _Rose was cut off by another presence, this time alerted to by Lucile.

"Hey umm, there's another one of these birds" Lucile announced alarmed. It emerged from behind them, blocking off their only other exit.

"Looks like we have no choice but to fight. I'll take this one; you two take the one from behind." Rose readied herself, as Lucile and Zack did the same. The Lucile and Zack stood shoulder to shoulder while Rose stood back to back with them creating a sort of triad formation. It was far too linear for a spread out approach. She hoped Zack or Lucile weren't stupid enough to do something that would cause them to topple over the cliffs.

But before they could commence, things took a turn for the worst (Just as Zack thought, it wouldn't be that easy). A third Fire Bird approached, surfacing the same way the second one had, gliding over with an almost deliberate slowness to meet its friend who was all ready to content against Zack and Lucile.

"What do we do now? Zack asked, already feeling the effects of his pumping adrenaline.

"Simple. We try not to die" was her response, the final response before the flurry of weapons and the explosion of fire echoed throughout the magma filled cavern.


	35. Chapter 35

**Chapter 35**

The three of them broke position, each targeting their own bird. Rose focused on the one in front while Zack and Lucile focused on the two behind her. Zack was perhaps at the biggest disadvantage of the three of them, no longer holding his Dragoon Spirit. But then he thought it probably wouldn't do him any good even if he did have it, the Fire Bird being a fire element would have a natural resistance to his fire offense, so he'd have little to give outside aerial combat. But it was his former ability to fly that may yet be the difference between life and death, especially when pitted on a thin ridge that had nothing but red hot lava below.

Rose and Lucile both transformed immediately. The Fire Bird's were hovering just out of melee reach, which put Zack at a further disadvantage. It was shades from the battle where he was facing a Sandorian soldier from the tree tops a while back all over again. 

Lucile drew her silver bow at once and let loose a barrage of ghostly arrows. The Fire Bird she was attacking managed to shrug the assault off with one of its huge blazing wings which acted as a shield over its body. It roared in what sounded like rage and shot out a small jet of flame from its gaping mouth. Lucile maneuvered around it, even if by just. But being in near proximity of the fiery blast scorched her body. 

Meanwhile Rose was mounting an offensive onslaught of her own, consisting of quick jabs, all the while skillfully evading the Fire Bird's heavy swipes of its wings. But she may as well have been swinging at a raging bushfire. As with the last time she faced the, physical attacks are rendered useless, which made her worry more about Zack.

Moving back to gain some distance, Rose fumbled into her small waste satchel, grabbing out a small blue sphere. 

She focused her will power on it for a moment, before it light up brilliantly in a sea blue, and then she hurled it at the Fire Bird, screaming "Ice Jet!" The orb turned into a large icicle that pierced the flaming bird's body, penetrating it with a sickening stab. The immediate area of the wound began to freeze, and the Fire Bird squawked in pain before it began to plummet below, the pool of lava underneath it splashing as the bird impacted. It cried out as it slowly sank into the hot magma, which absorbed everything until the bird became silent.

With her enemy dispatched, Rose pivoted around in mid flight, seeing Lucile having her own troubles with her bird and Zack even more; who could only dodge the volleys of the Fire Bird's ranged fireballs. 

_This is too much for them _Rose thought, as she positioned herself for her next attack, spreading her wings out for balance and parting her legs slightly.

"Everyone, find something to hold on to and don't let go!" Rose ordered as she held the handle of her sword in both hands, before she tilted the tip downwards, facing the ground below. She griped her sword firmly, called upon her willpower and her sword began to turn dark, slowly dripping black matter off her blade and becoming engulfed by the lava below.

"Demon's ga-" she was cut off mid sentence by a hurling fireball that hit her front on directly. She cried in pain and surprise, and as the explosion that was a result of the impact cleared, Rose plunged downward. She was able to regain her equilibrium before she would be swallowed up by the threatening pool below, steadying herself in the air. She looked around to see where the blast came from, her whole body scorching and throbbing with heat, and she didn't have to look far. Below her to the side a little a distinguishable bird's head was poking out of the magma, the one she thought she had done away with. It bellowed out, shot out of the lava with terrifying speeds and as it reached a height that was far above her, it shot downwards again, its speed increasing still as it aimed at Rose, hoping to barrel her into the river of flame below her.

Rose braced herself as much as her aching body would allow, but before she could move or even try to, three white arrows flew into the bird, exploding a white radiant smoke on impact. This did enough to deter the bird, and it moved off its course, and now that it had gained a speed too quick to brake, it plunged into the lava once again.

"Lucile you fool, worry about yourself!" Rose yelled as the Fire Bird that Lucile had occupied, which she momentarily took her attention off in favour to help her comrade swatted her with one of its giant yellow wings, causing her to crash against the wall of the volcano nearby with a loud crunch. Thankfully there was the path below her that saved her from falling into the magma below, and if not for it, she thought she would most surely be dead. The impact of the fall down was no better then the collision against the wall however, and as she landed back first, small bits of rocks and debris off the wall she had crashed into greeted her, thumping lightly off her now dusty silver armor. She was sure she had broken something as she rolled onto her side, the pain radiating from her back and into her arms and neck. 

_Looks like its time to try it _Lucile thought painfully. She joined the tips of both her fingers on each hand together, as if to grasp some imaginary globe. She concentrated all she could, trying to push the pain from her body to the back of her mind. "Holy light, grant me strength" she muttered, and her hand began to envelop in a white-silver light that shone brightly, starting from her clasped hands then traveling up her arms, to her shoulders, body, neck, legs and face until her whole body was consumed by the brightness. It then slowly faded, leaving a warm sensation in the pit of her stomach. She sat up, and noticed the immense pain she was in had now receded to nothing more then a small ache, her cuts and burns now only bruises and welts. 

Lucile took flight again, and it was then she realized how much energy that healing spell had taken out of her. And judging by the energy she had left, she knew she wouldn't be able to do it again. _I have to stay alert _she reminded herself calmly. Her initial terror now subsided, giving way for her revamped adrenaline which now tore through her body, urging her to be more aggressive. 

The Fire Bird shrieked, almost as if to say _how the hell are you back up_? It sneered and once again readied itself for a second launch, its wings flapping menacingly. Before it could however the surrounding area began to grow dark, like when a heavy cloud shrouds the sun during luminous day. It sent a mixture of unease, borderline horror through Lucile and Zack. It was a supernatural darkening, and it almost seemed to sap away at the very vitality around them, even as hot as the lava below them was appeared to cool a little. A cold chill ran down Zack's spine, and it didn't take him long to figure out what was the source of this paranormal dimness. 

"It's time you all found cover, and whatever you do, don't interfere" Rose ordered coolly as she raised her sword vertically with one arm. A loud roar could be heard, coming from the side of the Villude it sounded like. It couldn't be seen, not from where they were but it was definitely approaching. A large, serpent with wings like shadow materialized around them, and what was at a glace just a shadow unexpectedly came to life. The shadow that covered the valley's cliffs above the lava shot up, its form now solidified and its presence now well felt. It flew slightly, its frame daunting and intimidating, its dark scales reflecting nothing but its own darkness that mirrored around them. 

"Now, Dark Dragon, destroy the foes the block our path!" Rose cried, pointing her rapier at the birds. The dragon, which had a thin snake like body with a large crocodile like jaw and large purple wings roared in confirmation, it's long pointed tail swaying absently. Its black eyes gazed upon the three flaming birds, and for a moment Zack and Lucile thought it would do nothing more.

"Lucile, move!" Rose yelled, and she was startled back to reality. She flew down to Zack, who was taking cover behind a pile of large rocks that was probably caused by their heated battle, and waited. A long, cylinder object appeared from the dragon's underbelly it appeared, and looked to be almost half of the dragon's length, which in itself was considerable.

"Is… that a cannon on its belly?" Lucile asked softly. Zack shrugged.

"Guess we're about to find out" he replied calmly, although calm was the furthest thing he felt right now. He felt a large blend of emotion he couldn't quite explain, but they all circled around the same sensations. Dark, black, cold, lifeless. "Gods, what is that thing?" he whispered, more to himself then to anyone else. The dragon howled a final time before the cannon shot out a blanket of darkness, engulfing the first two Fire Bird's that were unlucky enough to get caught in it. The beam was potent enough to strike down the nearby wall, causing a small quake. Luckily no manga was on the other side, only more cliffs and molten rock. The bird's cried, but was abruptly silenced as the beam of darkness engulfed them, leaving not as much as a trace of remains. 

The final bird, the one that had been attacking Lucile hesitated, slowly flinging its wings to move it backwards. After seeing the dragon lay waste to its two friends, this one had no desire to engage. But it wasn't given much of a choice. The dragon flapped its large bat like wings, craned its neck malevolently before it straitened out and shot towards the Fire Bird like a long dart. Its speed was more then impressive, and as it approached it shot it's scorpion like tail out and impaled the bird, is tail ripping right through the flame fabric that created its form. It shrieked in what could only be assumed as pain, and small, black flames began to consume the red ones, until it was nothing more then a black blaze that dropped to the volcanic floor, where it would be finally devoured. 

And with that, the dragon turned back into a shadow, much as it had entered, and disappeared, as if it never came. The chilling darkness had disintegrated as well, much to Zack and Lucile's relief, and the battle was now over. 

Rose slowly flew to the eastern bank, where she dropped to her knees and de transformed immediately, gasping for breath. She used her hands to stabilize her self on her knees, and if not for them she thought she'd probably collapse completely. Her long hair fell over her face, strands of long ebony locks sprawled over her face, sticking like honey. 

Lucile was the first one to ask if she was okay, Zack falling behind a little due to the fact he couldn't fly. "Do you want me to try and heal you?' She asked as she placed her hand on Rose's shoulder for support. Zack arrived soon after, the blazing flames below now forgotten. 

"No" she rasped, propping herself to only one knee. "Wouldn't do any good anyhow, I'm just drained is all" she replied, her speech becoming more cohesive. "That last stunt took considerable energy, it always does. 

"How… did you do that?" Zack asked from behind Lucile, his tone a little tentative. Rose slowly rose to her feet, although she was still hunched over a little, breathing heavily. 

"Our Dragoon Spirit's are all incarnates of their original beings. As such, not only can they lend us power, but once a high level of mastery is attained you can summon them to battle as they once were" Rose explained. "Although the power need to pull out such a being is immense, and well, the ending result stands in front of you. Even someone who has had eleven thousand years experience can never truly adapt to the strain such a summon creates on ones body, and as such, is only used for emergencies."

"What an incredible beast" Lucile murmured. "It did away with those fire beasts like it was nothing.

"Just remember, as powerful as the dragon was, if the user doesn't have the energy to keep such a beast on a tight leash, it may end up devouring their master instead." Lucile gulped, imagining the dark dragon attack them instead of the birds. 

"I suggest we move out of here… if you can" Zack decided, looking at Rose with an expression of worry. "I'm all for a group discussion, but I'm sure you all agree this is not the best place to have it. Plus, I'm sure my skin will melt just being here." Rose nodded.

"I think that's the best idea I've heard you utter all day" Rose agreed. Zack scoffed, although he did so with intentional comic to show it meant no real malice in it, and the trio was off again, continuing through the Villude. 

* * *

"Thank god for that!' Zack beamed once he exited the volcano, now atop a mountain overlooking a forest, paved by a rigid rocky trail. The site looked almost identical to that of the entrance to the volcano, even the mouth they exited the Villude from. But he was glad to breath in fresh, cool air, and was equally if not more happy to be able to walk through a lava free environment.

"What's down there?" Lucile wondered, pointing to the green forest, seemingly more dense then the marshland with a peculiar greenish mist. Even from this far up green gunk could be seen overhanging a lot of the trees and branched, restricting most of the sunlight.

"The Nest of the Dragon, Feybrand, the essence of Wen's jade Dragoon Spirit" Rose answered, even though Lucile wasn't looking for one. "Some of his poison may still longer, so be careful alright?" she warned, aiming the comment more towards Lucile. They both agreed, and continued their hike down. 

"Once we reach a ways down from which we are safe from the Villude, or at least as safe as we can be, we'll set up camp and rest for the night. We deserve that much" Rose promised as she slowly climbed down the steep stony path. A sigh of relief passed Zack. His feet were aching, and his skin burning, and all he wanted to do right now was to crawl into anything that could be interpreted as a sleeping appliance, even if it was the rocky path below them, and fall into a heavy yet surely agonizing sleep. 

"I also still have that burning ointment, so you can both use that on your blistered skin once we camp" Rose added. Zack praised her for keeping it, and decided his sleep may not be that painful after all. 

Upon the foot of the trail leading toward the forest below, the Nest of the Dragon Rose had called it; they finally set camp, overlooking the Villude from above, and the view of the entrance of the Dragon's Nest laid not a few miles away. They set up their sleeping rolls, side by side inside the small dome like ten. Outside, as the blue sky slowly transcended into a blanket of darkness, they started a small bonfire to keep warm as they ate what they could catch. Mostly small rodents were today's menu, but by now Zack was used to it and so he didn't complain. Neither did Lucile for that matter, but whether it was because she was used to it herself or because she just simply knew it would do no good he didn't know. 

And so the threesome ate mostly in silence, each within there own internal discussions. Small words were passed between them, but it was still unusually quiet, and it wasn't until Lucile asked a question that really sparked that night's palaver. 

"Rose... what happened to Master Haschel? Please tell me" Lucile pleased almost with starry eyes. Rose had avoided the question the few times the Rogue warrior had prompted it, although not because she was worried about her fragile feelings, but rather the impact it would create on her resolution to train. Now that her training has been completed, there was no longer a reason no to tell her.

"Very well, we shall converse about Haschel's fate" Rose began indifferently. She gazed up at the sparkling stars, watching them glitter atop a backdrop of a cloudless black. "As you're aware, Haschel left the village, looking for his runaway daughter prior to joining us in our struggle against Melbu Frahma and Lloyd." 

"Yes, he left when I was only seven, my first master and inductor to the Rogue martial arts style" Lucile broke in thoughtfully. Zack remained silent in the background, but kept his ears open, listening intently. 

"Well, as we defeated him I was separated from the main group which included Haschel. He and the rest of my comrades were captured by Wen and Sandora, and" Rose paused or a minute, as if to add further dramatic effect. "They were all slaughtered." 

Lucile recoiled, her eyes dropping to the ground below them. But… she didn't get upset as Rose expected. She's either in shock or she holds her emotions better then she thought. Rose continued to tell the rest of the tale while she was there, which involved Wen's obsession with the Dragoon's and the bits and pieces she left out of her and Zack's journey so far. 

"And that is all I have to tell" Rose concluded, watching the blazing bonfire. Nothing was said for a few minutes, but it was Rose who was the one to break the silence. 

"Are you upset? Angry? Do you now seek revenge?" Rose questioned. Lucile shook her head slowly and considerately.

"I'm a little shocked, but to tell the truth I was expecting something like this. Also I was seven when he left so I didn't get all that close to him. It's still sad news none the less though" she replied somberly. "As for revenge… No, I'll have no part of it. I believe that'll be a job left for you anyhow."

Rose nodded in agreement, rather happy with her response. "Good. The moment the White Silver Dragoon's host submerges ones heart with malice, such is the nature of things like hate and vengeance, then the power is no longer their own, as it is against all the Dragoon stands for" Rose replied calmly. 

"To be honest, I would like to create a world without wars, fighting and weapons. A world full of peace I suppose" Lucile continued. Rose thought the idea naive, but came to no surprise. All of the Dragoon's predecessors, Shana, Miranda and even Shirley had vouched for the same thing. 

"There never will be a world without conflict, hate, and consequently wars. It's in our nature" Rose said. 

"I know, I know" Lucile exasperated. "But I'd like to get the closest thing to it. The world today is far too chaotic, driven by trivial ideals like power and money."

"There's nothing trivial about either if used in the right hands. Or the wrong ones, rather" Rose interrupted. But on deeper thought, Rose didn't know if she could exist in such a fairy tale land with no such thing as violence, hostility or aggressive content. There would be no use for her in such a world where she was trained to kill, rather then to work thing out peacefully. For a moment she was stuck wondering what she would do if it came to that, then with a feeling of something like alarm realized she had no idea what. She thrived on conflict and from her as the Dark Dragoon's perspective, she didn't know if she liked he idea of total harmony which would render her purposes useless.

"Nether the less, I'll do all I can to create a world as close to true peace as I can" Lucile spoke firmly. "I only kill when I have to, only engage in combat when I have to, my training taught me that more then anything, in hopes that one day we won't have to any more. At least, that's my goal."

Another silence, and for the first time, and very unexpectedly, Rose showed an act of compassion towards the girl, and said something so out of character she expected Rose the last person to utter such a statement. 

"Never lose sight of that goal Lucile; never let anything taint your undying faith and resolve." Lucile stared at her wide eyed, but Rose stood up, brushing off the small particles of dust that stuck to her lap. 

"I'm going to sleep, and I suggest you two do the same. We'll be up at dawn, even if I have to drag you up" Rose regarded Zack specifically in that last sentence, before she disappeared inside the tent without another word. 

"I'll be back in a moment" Zack spoke, standing up. Lucile nodded.

"I'll put out the fire then." Zack agreed, and disappeared inside the tent as well. 

"Hey Rose" Zack spoke. She was on he knees rummaging through her bag. 

"What is it?" Rose answer back without turning her head.

"Just thought you should know you said a nice thing back there, and it looks like it really impacted Lucile. Come to think of it, I think it's the first real positive statement you made to her." 

"It's nothing" Rose responded typically. Zack smiled behind her, then slowly walked to her, crouching down as well and placing his head on one of her shoulders from behind her. 

"You do have a nice, caring side after all" Zack whispered to her ear as his head rested on her shoulder. She paused for the briefest moment, before she continued to rummage through her bag, as if trying to ignore him. Rose had already found what she was looking for, but she needed something to divert her attention from the situation that was slowly turning into one of romance. She could feel him breathing against her neck, sending an unfamiliar sensation (yet not necessarily unpleasant) down her body. She couldn't bring herself to break to contact, even though she thought she should. _You can't Rose, you don't want to _her mind spoke at her. 

"Rose, never lose sight of that small flicker of light amongst the dark" Zack said softly, before he raised his head and stood up, making his way to his sleeping bed. Lucile returned not a minute later after extinguishing the fire, and not long after that they were all in bed, asleep, except one, who thanks to recent events had a lot more to think about. 

**Note: **I know that I depict Rose's Dragon summon a little differently to that on the game, but for some reason I thought it more appealing. In this story, I am god so I get the privilege to change what I see fit . Anyway, happy readings as always and thanks again to my faithful reviewers.


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter 36**

As promised, Rose, Zack and Lucile were up at sunrise, which was partially blocked by the volcano towering over from behind them. With the Dragon's Nest looming in front of them like an ominous calamity waiting to unfold, the group prepared for the journey ahead.

For one of the few rare occasions, perhaps only as many as three or four in their time traveling together Zack had risen earlier then Rose. What constituted to that fact may have been the meager two hours of actual sleep her body was only willing to surrender amongst the sea of scattered thoughts that continually invaded her mind, most of which revolved around one person, much to her annoyance.

"Judging by what we've been through so far, why do I think that this won't be as simple as it appears" Zack said as they all stared at the green yet almost brooding forest after they gathered all their necessities. Rose, who kept her reticence as she usually did only continued to gaze.

"As long as the dragon definitely isn't alive or anything" Lucile broke in, making emphasis on the definitely. "Or it doesn't somehow come back to life we should be fine, right?" No one answered, not even Zack who was now convinced that anything could happen, even the seemingly impossible.

"Lets get going" Rose spoke, for the first time that morning. Her tone was a strangle calmness, a serenity that was usually absent or didn't exist.

"Are you okay?' Zack asked softly. Rose looked at him questioningly, tilting her head in puzzlement. "Of course, why wouldn't I be?" she replied.

Zack studied her for a few moments longer, then digressed. "Never mind, must just be the morning playing tricks on me, as it has a habit of doing I'm sure you know" he broke off. "Let's go."

Rose nodded and led on, but Zack did think something was wrong. Something was weighing heavily on her mind. He then thought his assumption unjust; Rose more likely then not had hundreds of complications burdened upon her shoulders that probably felt like an a hundred ton weight, sitting above her like a relentless anvil. It was phenomenal to Zack that she has the spirit to hold herself up.

For the remainder of the short journey towards the entrance to the nest Zack continued to speculate in silence while Rose and Lucile held their own exclusive discussion, as unusual as that was. It was mostly Rose revealing the history of Feybrand and her former exploits in the nest, to which even Zack listened to intently. But even that went quickly, and before they knew it, the entrance to their next trial lied in front of them.

"Looks a lot larger up close" Lucile remarked.

"A lot more dangerous too" Zack added absently.

"I don't know what to expect in here, so be on your guard at all times" Rose warned sharply. "I have a bad feeling about this place…" She sounded as if to cut her self short, like she had more to say but was unwilling. The two of them nodded when no further explanation was forthcoming. "Also, as I mentioned earlier, the poison still lingers in this area. Be cautious, and try not to let anything come into contact with any open wounds or soft tissue, or one is apt to become sick."

And so they entered, pushing past the shrubby overgrowth that partially blocked the entrance and now they stand in front of a forest filled with green moss that covered the ground and the long, tendril like branches, adjacent to a seemingly untainted stream that quietly rushed south.

Zack took his first breath in the dense, thick, green mist like atmosphere and it felt like someone had clasped their hand around his throat and began to squeeze. Zack released his breath with a series of raspy splutters, nearly choking on the small particles of green flakes that lingered in the forest like a kind of green snow.

"Are you alright?" Lucile asked fretfully as he continued to cough. When she approached him, perhaps to try and give some sort of physical assistance, he used the hand not cupped over his barking mouth to signal her away. She paused, but still remained near as if he should call upon her.

"We'll wait here for a few minutes, give you time to adapt. If you need to, go out and get some fresh air." Rose injected coolly. Zack's coughs had receded to heavy breathing, although just as he though he had gotten over it, a new fit of coughs were ready to meet him.

After a minute of so of this Lucile took him outside where the fresh air remedied his intoxicated lungs almost immediately. He stood her for a while longer, before venturing back inside to meet Rose who stood patiently, unmoving.

He once again went through a series of spasms, although to a much lesser degree, before his body began to cope. Still panting for a cleansed air he couldn't find, his body began to adjust.

"How come neither of you two are… like this" Zack asked, nearly not being able to finish, the back of his throat beginning prickle, threatening to spasm once again.

"Lucile's Dragoon Spirit probably purifies the air inside her, allowing pass freely without any problems. As for me, well, I'm sure you know why" she answered, her eyes scanning ahead for the best and quickest possible root that didn't involve delving into the depths of the nest that lurked below.

"Well, hopefully that's the worst of it. I'm ready when you are" Zack said confidently; although it was with a confidence he didn't really feel. But still, as always, the trio continued on.

As they ventured into nest, the density of the moss and trees increasing substantially, so much that it was nearly impossible to see the sun under the forecast of shadow and the new white spider like webs that had manifested. Contrary to what Zack thought or believed, his condition had only become graver. Dangerously grave if you got right down to it. His coughs became regularity as they came and went in patches. Not only that but more physical symptoms began to surface. The small flesh under his eyes began to swell, almost to the point of puffiness as if he had some sort of flue or hay fever. The tissue within his eyes became an unhealthy reddish colour which contrasted against his ghostly pale skin. His movements by this stage had become sluggish, and for the usual social chatterbox he was, he was acting rather despondent.

_The poison's unusually thick in this forest. Much thicker then when I was last here _Rose thought strangely. _It doesn't appear natural either. It's as if someone magnified it._

Rose maintained a steady and watchful gaze Zack, glancing over her shoulder at him every few moments to check on his status. She didn't stop though, couldn't stop in her mind. The quicker they could clear this poisonous nest that was infecting his body with whatever viral or pathogenic particles that invaded his body, the quicker he would be relieved. Stopping or halting would only impede and in turn slow their progress, which would increase the chances that he would fall fatally ill. _He already is ill, fatally so and you know it. He won't make it out of here he is dead on his feet already and he'll be unconscious, or worse yet dead at this rate _the cynical portion of her conscience chimed. And by the looks of it she was right.

"We gotta do something about him' Lucile broke in, her voice high with concern. Zack trailed behind, ambling absently.

"There isn't anything we can do; we just have to get him out of here as quickly as we can." Lucile's eyes widened incredulously.

"What do you mean nothing? He could be dead by the time we get out of here or even near the exit" she protested. Rose looked at a half swaying Zack who had become stationary, then back at Lucile.

"We have nothing that can combat the poison" Rose replied calmly.

"We have me! I can try!" the silver martial artist half shouted. Rose shook her head slowly and emphatically, silencing her comrade.

"It would do no good. Even if you could cure him, he'd only become infected again, you're better off conserving the limited power you possess" she countered almost without any emotion.

Lucile glared at her leader in shock and appall, only adding more fuel to the already raging fire that was her anger.

"For god sake Rose, he may die! How can you stay so apathetic? What the hell kind of leader are you!?"

Lucile expected perhaps Rose's own anger to surface, or at least faze her otherwise indifferent demeanor, but she did neither. She took a long slow breath and reminded her that the more time they waste arguing here is less time they had to get their intoxicated companion out of the forest. Again this only manage to further annoy Lucile.

A thump sounded from behind them, and they both turned in the direction it came at once. Zack laid stomach first down on the emerald coloured ground, his hair sprawled over the top of his head, rendering his expression unreadable. They had an idea that it wouldn't be a good one.

Lucile sighed in vexation, the kind of _look what you did now _sigh. "Fine, if you won't do anything then I will." She traveled over to the face down Zack, turned him on his back so his face was now distinguishable. It looked like that of a person who was having trouble breathing, as if the air in his lungs was being sucked out or blocked off. Perhaps it was. She knelt down and placed both of her spread out hands on his heaving chest and began to mutter a chant to herself. When she finished, a light enveloped him momentarily before fading, his breathing becoming more slow and deep, his pale face lighting a fraction. But that was all she had achieved. Rose was right; trying to remedy him in this infectious environment did very little. Yet she had to try something, and if she perhaps repeated the process again, she may accomplish something yet.

Rose looked on in silent surprise and part amusement, the other part horror. Here was a woman who only knew him for a little over a week, doing everything she could as if it was someone of her own family. She would later think that in a way they were her family now, all familiarities aside. And yet all she could do was stand there in awe, watching as someone she fancied a potential romantic interest, the only one who she had even remotely considered in many years, slowly wither away. Lucile's desperate actions set the notion concrete in her mind for the first time that Zack, the only one marginally close to her may actually perish right under her watch. This in turn frightened her, and for someone she stormed the Black Castle for to pull away from death's clutching fingertips, she was about to watch him once again fall into its eternal grasp. _No! _She shouted defiantly to herself_. I'll be damned if I'll let it happen._

Now torn out of her callous trance, Rose hurried towards Lucile and a prone Zack.

"I managed to stem the flow of the poison momentarily, but it only buys us time" Lucile spoke gravely, not turning her head away from Zack to face Rose's. "As little as it may be" she added somberly. "Hopefully it'll be enough to get him out of here and into fresh air and then to a medical facility. But we must hurry; he's still laying on death's door step."

Rose nodded and with an amazing feat of pure strength, despite what her otherwise slender frame perceived, Rose assumed it must have been from her martial arts training, she hoisted Zack's limp body onto her shoulders, one hand cradling and protecting his head, the other holding his left leg for stabilization.

"I'll carry him. I need you to keep in front and cut down anything, or _anyone_ that gets in our way". Rose agreed, her eyes flashing dangerously as if to confirm she'd do just that. With Zack in the in distress, Lucile pitied anyone foolish enough to get in their path.

As they hurried through their remainder of the forest, at least as fast as Lucile's strength would allow, Rose had time to consider and then admire Lucile's sudden burst of leadership. In such dire situations in which most who claim to be leaders either hesitate or crumble under the pressure entirely, such leadership qualities are hard to come by, and yet she took on the role with full confidence. She was right in assessing Lucile harbored certain qualities that Zack lacked, and it was now evident that raw leadership that in time may even rival or surpass her own was one of them.

"Are we anywhere near the exit?" Lucile huffed as Rose made sure nothing would impede their progress.

"Not much longer" Rose assured much to Lucile's relief. Carrying a fully grown person was tiring enough in itself, but Zack's body carried more muscle then the average person, and subsequently she felt like she was carrying a boulder on her shoulders. She was able to burst out in small lengths of jogging when her body would allow, but the thick humidity made sure that such bursts were sporadic. Her whole body now gleamed in perspiration, and she found herself again cursing the heat brought fourth by the midday sun.

Lucile didn't know how long they had been relentlessly trudging through the nest for, it felt like days to her but she guessed only a few hours. She could still feel Zack breathing lightly against her shoulder and neck, but it was slowly fading, fading like a hot summer afternoon slips into the cooling darkness of the night. _Hold on just a bit more _Lucile thought, as if Zack could detect her silent plea in the deep recesses of his unconsciousness.

"Even the monsters here have been few and between" Lucile breathed out, but it came out as a quick breathless slur rather then a cohesive sentence.

"It seems the poison affects most of the natural denizens of this forest as well" Rose answered. But the lack of roaming monsters was the furthest thing from her mind at the moment. Like Lucile, her only worry was getting Zack to safety.

The three now reached the last portion of the forest, although this was the part that proved most challenging. They stood on the left bank, the right being separated by the seamless water that still ran south, it's tranquil yet crystal clear appearance seemingly unfazed by the tainted air around it. Before them was a large circular pit that descended into blackness, the side closest to the, was a very thin wall of white web with glints of greenery, while the other side of the large hole blended back into the towering tree limbs.

"What the heck is that?" Lucile asked in puzzlement as she looked at the gaping hole. She had already guessed what is was, but decided she wanted Rose's confirmation.

"That leads to the nest below. I'm hoping we can avoid that by going around the outside." Rose turned her glance over to the almost wire like edge that marked the closest side of the gap, the other side was met by the crashing stream.

"You mean we gotta cross _that_? Lucile asked in horror. "There's no way, it would be hard enough alone, let alone with him on my back" she protested, looking at the blackness that greeted them on one side and the water that swept back the way they came on the other.

I'll go first. You'll use me as support" Rose replied simply, as if the task was nothing more then walking through a clear cut park. Lucile looked at the fading Zack, understood that they hadn't the time to argue or the time to fall and climb back up from the lower nest, and nodded her head uneasily. "I guess we haven't much choice" she said nervously. Rose nodded, and began walking across the curving outline almost immediately, turning to her side when her two feet where balance, and holding one hand out of Lucile, using her extra strength to hold her as well as maintain balance.

"We'll use each other for support and balance. If we can mange to do that, we'll be okay. Of course, if one of us reels… I'm sure you can guess the outcome" Rose stated plainly. Lucile couldn't imagine how Rose could remain so calm and collected, in a situation that was most apt to cause them all to plummet to their deaths. She later thought if she ever did feel terror, she'd never show it. To Rose, any emotion that could be interpreted as fear or hesitation, was an emotion that going to give your enemy (even an inanimate object as the one they stood on) the upper hand, even if just psychosocially.

And so Rose and Lucile slowly shimmied across the chasm little both little, both of them hand in hand. Thankfully as Lucile would find out the thick white spider web like substance that covered the outside of the hole they edged across had a strong stick to it, like a strong white super glue. This unexpected ally and an ally is what Lucile considered it on the couple of occasion she began to lose balance had proved invaluable in regaining that balance at the crucial moment.

"Try not to look down" Rose remarked, almost offhandedly. Lucile let out a shrill, nervous laugh. It wasn't just the fact that she had already looked down and already knew what awaited her if she fell, either an untimely fall or a drowned sea coffin, it was the way she said it. It was almost a remark of dry wit or humor, but of course she knew there was no humor within the statement, which sparked half of the comedy. She supposed it was probably nerves as well.

After several minutes of slow, agonizing movements that allowed them to cross that took absolute precision, lest the were to fall, they were able to make it over to the other side, safe, and alive.

In the distance, a small gleam of light shone through, signifying some sort of exit or at least an opening, which filled Lucile with a sense of hope and giddiness.

"We're nearly there" Lucile verbalized. Rose nodded, looking across to where the light came from.

"Let us waste no more time" Rose replied and moved on, her feet making a kind of thick sappy sound as her boots broke out of the excess web's grasp.

But as close as their exit may seem, another trial of danger and malice lurked even closer. They had well passed the nest of the open nest of Feybrand and the exit was only a few hundred meters away, but a certain almost buzzing noises sounded from somewhere in front of them. It was almost a sort of doggish cry, thick and not human in the least.

"Wha… What was that?" Lucile wondered fearfully.

Rose's eyes scanned the area vigorously, but were only able to find the same thick trees and green mist followed by patches of white web that had surrounded them since they first entered. Apparently her ears picked up more then her vision could. It cried out again, this time it sounded only a few feet away from them, ready to strike at any given moment.

"Listen closely" Rose half whispered, her hand wrapping around the handle of her trusty blade. "I want you to run towards the exit as fast as you can. It isn't far, but I want you to get him out of here and try and cure him once outside, then take him to the Lohan infirmary if necessary, but whatever you do, don't come back here"

"Are you sure you'll be okay? I can come back to offer assistance if – "

"Don't worry I can handle it, just wait ten, twenty minutes at most before you set off to Lohan and wait a night, If I'm not back, assume the worst" she broke in. "Now go!"

Lucile looked at her doubtfully for a few seconds, and then told herself Rose can look after herself and she'll be fine, she was sure she has seen worse situations before. Turning around and breaking into a half sprint, it was as much as her legs would allow, she began to take off.

It was a flash, nearly as quick as Rose was herself and if not for her pin point eyes and split second reaction time, she may not have been able to stop it.

"Lucile, duck!" Rose shouted as a large, sharp brown tree limb snapped out towards the martial artist and her fallen friend, who were only a few meters away from where Rose was standing. Lucile did as was told instinctively and dropped to her knees, and as she did she felt a swoosh sound followed by a thrust of air sail past her. Rose dashed with lightening speed, and in one quick fluid motion she unsheathed her blade and sliced in an upwards arc, cutting right through the thick branch that was inches away from impaling Lucile.

Lucile looked up, her eyes wide with shock and amazement. For the moment she was unable to get her body to respond. The part attached to the now sawn off tree limb that curved into a sharp point that lied dead on the ground recoiled to where it came back into the bushes, a loud deafening moaning noise left in its wake.

Lucile looked at Rose, her expression hard and serious. "What the hell are you doing!? Move!" she shouted. Lucile nodded gingerly, and somehow willed herself to her feet and began to jog onwards, her feet buckling as she went and for a fretful moment she was sure they would give out from under her.

Fortunately what tried to strike Lucile didn't follow in pursuit. It roared in pain, and when Lucile was beginning to turn the final corner out of the forest and out of Rose's line of sight, the new challenge that was totally enraged and fixated on Rose now presented itself fully.

_What the hell? _Rose wondered fiercely. What appeared in front of her was not a fiend or one of Wen's cronies (at least she didn't think) but a tree, a tree that was very much alive. It was a foot or so taller then her, it's large roots that slithered across the ground to give it mobility was almost like that of a snake, as the light ebon colour of the bark at the roots slowly progressed into a darker brown as it reached it's peak. It was almost humanoid in a sense, it's roots acted as legs, then it had a long straight body where two branches broke off on either side, each splitting into five or so tendrils (save for the one she just cut off) as if to act as some form of humanoid arm or hand. The top kind off broke off into uneven antlers that looked like one would find on a deer. What was most peculiar were the two round holes in the center of the body that almost resembled human eyes and the small rectangle under it that acted as a kind of jagged mouth, where she assumed the inhumane noises were coming from.

"Let's dance" Rose invited, as if the small living tree could understand her. She had a strange feeling that it could.

The tree like monster wasted no time in its assault, and for an object that was supposed to be earthed into the ground, it possessed remarkable quickness. The roots acted like a sort of spring board as it shot towards her, thrusting out one of its long, shark branches. Rose was able to evade the attempt easily by rolling to the side, ducking the would be fatal impact. She quickly followed up with a horizontal slash to its side, the sword making a loud thunk noise as it cut into the wood. The wood monster growled lowly, and then flung it's near by branch towards her in a swoop. Rose looked on in horror as her sword stuck into the wood, her strength not enough to pry it free. At the last second she jump backwards away from the incoming tendril, but it still struck her in the cheek, sending her reeling.

She fell on one knee to stabilize herself as her face began to sting, almost like she'd been slapped emitted from her face. A trickle of blood began to seep from the flesh wound. Standing up, she spied her sword, the blade well indented into the body of the tree. It almost seemed to laugh, as if to taunt her. _What will you do now? _It seemed to beckon_._

"It's too bad, but I don't have time to play with you" Rose murmured in her usual cold tone. Closing her eyes and focusing her energy, she began to will her body to transform… Only she couldn't. As she felt the energy in her surge, a strong wave of dizziness crashed into her, as if she'd been hit on the head by a brick. It negated all the energy she had summoned for the transformation, leaving her in a state of momentary bewilderment.

But that one moment was all her enemy needed to capitalize, and so a strong whiplash sound echoed as the hard part of one of the branched slammed into her abdomen like a log, sending her crashing to the ground. She coughed reflexively, as one would from such an unsuspecting blow. A new wave of sharp pains ran through her, and much more intense then the laceration she copped on her face.

Rose managed to get herself to her feet and create a few meters of distance from her opponent. It didn't really appear concerned, as if it was taking her time with her, slow and deliberate.

Rose tired again to transform into her Dragoon form, but only achieved the same result. This time the faintness that hit her almost sent her vertigo. Opening her eyes slowly, she saw a few flakes of green sit on her shoulder, gleaming brightly.

_So that's it. The poison Is preventing me from transforming _Rose thought unhappily. _Now I know this is a result of outside interference, relatable to Wen more likely then not._

But Rose had other problems to worry about, and one that was closing in on her. Now without a weapon and without the ability to shift forms, the slightest feeling of apprehension began to creep into the bowls of her stomach. It was then she began to notice that green moss covering the tree as well, and was most probably the source, or at least part of the problem.

And, as if nothing more could go wrong, she had jumped back into a puddle of sticky, silky white web. Struggling to gain back the freedom she would need, another trunk collided with her, this time in the side of her ribs. The mere force of the impact sent her flying back a few meters, and into the green covered floor below. At least now she was out of the web.

Coughing out a fresh spew of blood from her mouth, she rolled herself off her side to elevate some of the pain. It didn't accomplish much though, the agonizing pain the wrecked her body, coupled with the poison that seemed to affect her marginally more now began to see her body towards the world of oblivion. Her vision, now blurring around the edges and slowly creeping in, could detect her tree like predator approaching, sensing its prey coming to its end.

_At least he's safe _Rose thought fleetingly as she rose to her knees. If she was going to go out, it sure as hell wouldn't be on her back. Heck, it'd be on her feet if her body would allow, but her knees were all she could give herself at that moment. The tree stood over her, rising on of its limbs high in the air as Rose's head slumped down, almost like it was the executioner about to behead the criminal, who in this instance would be Rose.

And that was the last thing Rose saw before the blackness consumed her.

* * *

**Note: **Phew, what a chapter. Sorry for the long update, Uni has been slamming me for the last week or so and as a result I've had scarce time to really sit down and write. Luckily the short break is coming up, so I'll be able to focus more attention to my story once again. Happy readings!

-Michael.


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter 37**

Rose awoke in a small white linen covered bed, her eyes slowly adjusting to the light that seemingly shone in from the windows on either side of the rectangular room she was now laying in. As her eyes attuned, she realized she was looking at an ebon wood roof, and she slowly turned her head in either direction, taking in the new scenery. Her head felt a little fuzzy, but that was nothing, it didn't impede her physically as far as she could tell. Her ribs didn't ach as she had expected either, but only throbbed with a tapered kind of far away sharpness. She glanced around the tiled floor, which slowly fixated on a large cabinet at the end of the room adjacent to her bed. A doorway was on the other end which led out into wide hall way, and that was as far as she could see, her vision disappearing behind the white walls that spanned onwards, probably leading to other rooms identical to hers. After a few moments of assessing her surroundings, the familiarity dawned on her, and it didn't take her long to figure out where she was.

_I'm at the Lohan hospital ward _she thought almost dejectedly. _So I'm not dead after all. The only question left now is how._

A recognizable voice sounded from the hallway outside, and soon a head to match it peered in slowly.

"You're awake" the blonde women spoke softly, relief flooding through her.

"How did I get here? What happened?" Rose asked with a kind of peculiar absence. She felt like she was still half asleep, minus the drowsiness, like she was in some surreal dream you couldn't wake out of only to find you somehow never wanted to. _This must be how Zack felt _Rose thought, concluding it was the work of some exceptional painkillers that brought on such an effect.

"You were attacked and knocked unconscious, then brought back here" Lucile explained calmly. She stepped inside and then sat on the chair closest to the farthest window.

"You brought me here?" she asked with a tone of disbelief. Lucile shook her head.

"Don't worry about it now, I can explain later. Get some sleep and try not to move much, we have the best doctors working on you who are rumored to be the best in Serdio."

Rose shook her own head in refusal, signifying she had all the rest she needed. Her mind slowly began to climb back to its usual clarity, and so she assured Lucile she felt alright, and she was more then ready to chat about recent events. Lucile sighed slowly, and gave up any further protests. She knew it would do no good anyhow, once her mind was set there was very little anyone could do to change it.

And so she sat up in an upright position, her body emitting small sharp pains, but none she wasn't already expect or couldn't handle.

_Come to think of it… _Rose ran a tentative hand down her damaged sternum. Her usual dark leather top and shoulder pads were absent, leaving only the naked top half of her body bound by a layer of white bandages which left the tops of her shoulders, her arms and the bottom of her navel exposed. But even with the bandages, which made her feel almost naked, she could still assess the damage. _It should be much more severe. I could have sworn at least two or three of my ribs were cracked if not shattered._

"You healed me?" Rose questioned, although it came out more of a statement. She knew full well the answer. Lucile agreed, grinning a little with satisfaction, like a dog that had just pleased their master.

"You did a good job" Rose commented uneasily. "Your training has done you well and I'm glad to know it wasn't a waste of time." Lucile knew it sounded a little rude, but it was a close as she would get as far as compliments were concerned and she knew it. And so she smiled and nodded humbly.

"I wasn't the only one" she added after in an offhand sort of fashion. The room fell silent and suddenly the reason of why the botched escapade escalated into what it did in the first place, momentarily forgotten, came rushing back Rose like a tidal wave.

"And what of Zack?" Rose asked, a hint of nerve in her tone.

"I think you should see for yourself" Lucile answered. She stood up, and then stepped outside into the hallway without another word. A few moments later another figure stepped in, this one also familiar, and when he walked in hesitantly, she felt a portion of the anvil that gung on her shoulders lift, and she inwardly rejoiced at the small victory that was achieved.

"Umm, hi" Zack greeted sheepishly as he subconsciously placed one of his hands behind his neck, rubbing aimlessly. It was a nervous habit he most often did in awkward situations, but it did little to ease him, only made him feel like a boy who had embarrassed himself in a classroom of laughing kids.

"How are you feeling?" he followed, his voice soft yet still carrying his usual optimistic tone.

"I'm fine" she responded typically, leaving no further room for conversation on that subject. An unnerving silence began to creep in, and so Rose decided she'd break it before it came too outright uncomfortable.

"It's good to see your poison's treated" Rose started, her eyes narrowing downward slightly. "I was almost worried you wouldn't make it."

Zack chuckled quietly. "I'm as good as new. As soon as I was out of the forest, Lucile had apparently healed me up, remedying the otherwise fatal toxins."

Rose nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, she is the reason you're alive" Rose said, a twinge of guilt tugging at her from her earlier dismissive attitude that would have coast him his life.

"I heard you got these injuries in a fight because of me. If I had not been a burden, the fight would have been perhaps avoidable, and for that I'm sorry" Zack apologized somberly. It made Rose almost flinch, the way he said it, the way his eyes pierce into her own, making her feel like she would melt under his scrutiny.

"It was nothing, it's Lucile who deserves the credit" Rose retorted, turning her head to the side, looking out into the daylight that shone through the square window. The breeze that was blowing in felt nice.

Although Rose didn't look at Zack, he could hear him approach, his light footsteps closing in on her.

"Hold still for a moment" he almost coaxed. The way he said it made her freeze, and she then thought whether he didn't want her to, she would remain unmoving anyway, as if a sort of paralysis had consumed her.

She next felt his rugged yet somewhat warm hands brush her shoulder blade, lightly tracing her neck, down to the back top of her uncovered shoulders to where her pale skin disappeared behind the blend of white bandages.

"So many scars" Zack mused as he traced the crisscross scars that marked the now visible sections of her body with a tender lightness. The contact made her shutter slightly, breaking her paralysis. Gods how long had it been since anyone had touched her like this? Even Zeig who she planned to wed only touched her bare skin on occasions that would fall into the single digits, and anyone else would be dead before they could even get a hand on her shirt.

"And yet" he began, his soft voice almost enchanting, like a spell that was placed on her rending her helpless to his will. His hands brushed her cheek, bringing her face towards his, one finger lightly creasing her newly formed cut thanks to the tree monster. "You only have this scar on your face."

She held back a wince that began to lightly surge as his finger touched her now stinging laceration. Part of the reason may have been because she didn't want to break contact, that part of her was somehow enjoying the warming sensation that made her cheekbones high with an almost rosy redness, which in turn began to warm her cold and bitter heart, slowly burning down its frozen barriers.

He pulled his hands away from her, which to her surprise left her with a longing desire to repeat the process. This shocked her a little and appalled her at the same time, and when she felt his eyes set firmly on hers, the redness in her face almost throbbed.

None of them said anything for a few moments. Rose sure as hell couldn't anyhow. They just locked eyes, and slowly as the peaceful silence, not so awkward this time set in, both of their worlds began to merge, crashing against each other in a maelstrom of bewilderment, lust and helplessness. She told herself to look away, that this would only lead to more trouble; gods only knew they already had enough in their road, but she couldn't bring herself to look away. She was attracted to him like a magnet is to metal and that fact began to frighten her, that under his gaze he could take her, and do whatever he wanted and she wouldn't resist. She was, at least for the moment, no longer her own mistress. This outright horrified her, after Zeig she had solemnly sworn that she would not devote herself to another person, would not become attached to the point of needing. She only needed to rely on herself, and so she had for eleven thousand years. Yet here she was, in front of one black haired Zack, stunned into a helpless school girl romance.

"Lucile will be here soon to explain what happened" Zack said, breaking the silence. This again left her with the sensation of both relief and yearning, and all she was able to muster out was an "okay." Her mind and thoughts stilled roared like a cyclone, her practical nature trying to reassure the blurring lines between realism and fantasy.

He then gave her a soft smile, the smile that really brought out his features, and she had come to love it and hate it in equal measure. Come to think of it, his whole being sparked so many different conflicting feelings, feelings that would yet become dangerous if they haven't already unless kept to the back of her mind.

"Anyway, I'll go get Lucie and give you a couple of minutes to rest if need be" Zack went on casually. It appeared he had coined Lucile a nickname as well, as he did her. "This story, from what Lucile has told me briefly about, is a long yet interesting one."

Rose nodded, and he left, gliding out of the door and into the hallway. Slowly, she managed to reassert herself, get her own feelings under a tight lid so not to burst out. She absently ran her own hand across her blemished back, doing exactly as Zack had done. It still felt warm from his touch, and a jolt of electricity ran through her, like it had when he was touching her.

_Damn it _she cursed, looking for something to cover her skin. It wasn't so much that she was worried people could see, they already had most likely, but she didn't like the memories of past atrocities that each scar represented, like each was an individual badge of all the wrongs she had committed when she was the Black Monster. She still didn't really blame herself for the birth of such a fiend, she was doing what was right in her mind at the time, but it still didn't stop the haunting visages that appeared each time she looked at them.

"We're back" Zack announced, pulling her out of her contemptuous thoughts. Lucile followed close behind, and Zack pulled up a chair, Lucile opting to stand.

"Since we're all here, I'll recall the tale and fill in the missing blanks that you both missed, if you would be kind enough to listen" Lucile began slowly.

"Yes, I would hear every word" Rose replied immediately. Lucile nodded, took a breath, and then let it out in a long sigh.

"Well…" she momentarily found it hard to begin, not able to find the words to start the inevitable account. And then it came to her, in a vivid, almost too realistic wave of recollection.

"Well, as you know, Zack fell unconscious and we hauled him out of the forest, before you fought that monster, right?" Lucile started. Rose nodded, then signaled her ton continued when she appeared she wouldn't.

"Well… that's when it happened…"

* * *

_Rose slumped on the ground, her body limp and not moving. The tree monster that had knocked her out bellowed loudly, as if to cry in triumph. To leered down at its fallen victim, almost as if it was licking its absent lips._

_Within the shadows of then ear by trees, the grey marauders, the one from the entrance to the marshland earlier, all hid, watching silently. One of them raised their hand, and point to the monster, nodding its head lightly. "Do it." _

_A barrage of arrows flew from all direction, piercing the fiend with lethal precision. The beast shrieked, and then the unknown ally who had given the order withdrew its own bow, and as the arrow was pulled back against the string, it became enveloped in a white light and shot towards the injured monster, engulfing it in the white brilliant light on impact. _

"_Move" the leader of the group order, and they all jumped out of the shadows, forming around the dying foe. _

"_Finish it."_

_One of the other grey solider looking individuals pulled out a sword and severed it's tree body in half, the bark crunching as the blade tore through. _

"_Alright, six stay with me, the rest of you continue with the mission." They were all silent for a moment, and then six of the twelve members took off, disappearing back from where they had come._

_The leader walked forward, and pried the rapier free, its form still unscathed. _

"_Here, hold this" the voice spoke, throwing the sword handle first towards on of its comrades. It was caught easily. _

_Then one walked towards the unconscious Rose, picked her up over the shoulder, in much the same fashion Lucie had Zack, and they began to quickly make towards the exit._

* * *

_Lucile sat down next to Zack, in a state of exhaust and worry. As soon as she had got him out she used the rest of her healing energy to purify him, which managed to achieve good results. He was still unconscious, but was breathing regularly now, and it seemed he had escaped death yet again, at least for the moment. _

"_Hurry up Rose" Lucile murmured fretfully. It had been more then ten minutes, and she knew she should probably move, but she couldn't leave her behind. She refused to think her as dead, but just still in a heated battle._

_A sound emerged from the bushes nearby which marked the exit (or entrance, depending on which way you look at it) and Lucile swung around, her eyes narrow and calculating. Is it the monster? She wondered to herself. Her fear was soon put to rest when her acute eyes spotted gleaming silver that slowly manifested into six individuals, one with Rose draped over their shoulder. _

_Lucile was up and in her battle stance in an instant, her mind racing with hundreds of different conclusions to as why Rose was seemingly incapacitated. But never did one of those conclusions circle around them becoming an unlikely ally. As she raised her fist, to show that she was willing to defend herself and her friends, one of the grey warriors stood forward, holding up a halting hand._

"_We mean no harm" the voice said calmly. It was a feminine voice, yet it did little to comfort her._

"_I think you do" Lucile replied skeptically, gazing at a limp Rose. Her eyes then shot back at the person standing in front of her, eyes blazing. _

"_We did not create the injury, rather, we saved her from certain death" the female replied with the same calm, dinner table like mannerism. Lucile could not read their expressions because of their shrouding masks and it made her feel all the more uneasy. _

"_If that's the case, then give her to me. Then I may think about not hurting any of you" Lucile spoke dangerously as she scanned her eyes over her could be multiple foes. She didn't really think she could battle them all at once, probably not at full strength let alone in a state of exhaust, but she hoped her confident exterior would be enough to persuade them otherwise._

_The apparent leader turned to the one who was holding Rose, nodded, and then it stepped forward, kneeling down in front of Lucile and placing Rose on the ground with unexpected care. _

"_As we said, we are not your enemy" the leader repeated as the second associate walked back into the main group that had huddled behind the spokesperson. Lucile relaxed a fraction, letting her guard down as she hunkered down and briefly ran her hand across Rose's broken body. This elicit cries of pain from the unconscious Rose as she roughly bumped one of the injured bones or body parts, her sternum in particular took a heavy beating and as such, responded to the most. _

"_She isn't dead, don't worry. But she needs medical attention" the women broke in sternly. Lucile looked at her now two unresponsive comrades, and wondered fearfully how she would be able to cart them both to Lohan. She didn't even have enough energy to try and heal Rose's injures. _

"_We can assist in transporting Rose" she broke of momentarily, looking over at Zack. "And you're other inured companion to the Lohan hospital."_

_Lucile looked at them doubtfully. She no way trusted them, especially in the crises where their friend's now defenseless lives hang in the balance, but what choice did she have? It was beyond her physical capability to carry them both, and if she didn't get them to safety soon they would all be easy pickings for the roaming monsters that lurk the countryside. Plus, if they really wanted Rose dead, or worked for Sandora, wouldn't Rose already be dead, her Dragoon Spirit already- she paused in mid thought, and carefully searched through Rose's belongings, relaxing when her hand was met by a large purple orb._

"_We're not interested in that" the women broke in. Lucile looked at her with alarm and she felt her own spirit twinge a little. How did she know what she was going for? This brought further suspicions to Lucile's mind, but when Rose moaned from beneath her, she knew she had to move. _

"_I have no choice but to cooperate… but if I suspect even the slightest bit of what I consider to be hostile behavior, I'll strike with no hesitation" Lucile warned. The women smiled from behind her mask._

"_I hope so." The stranger admired her sense of responsibility and protection, to help her friends when help is needed. It almost reminded her of herself, a more timid, younger version of herself. _

_The leader and another masked member bent over and carried Rose and Zack respectively, trying to be as diligent as possible. When they were fastened over their shoulders, she turned to Lucile. "If we want to make the trip by noon tomorrow, we best get moving now."_

"And that was pretty much it' Lucile summarized. "We managed to get into Lohan, where when I reached the front of the hospital, they left without a word."

"How come I never woke up?" Rose questioned thoughtfully.

"The leader, I was never able to catch her name, in fact they revealed very little about themselves, had amazing healing insight. She was able to gather the local herbs and bushes and create a potent sedative, keeping you both asleep so you wouldn't move and upset your injures further. She was even able to treat some of your wounds Rose, her medical expertise far surpassed mine, and she didn't even have a Dragoon Spirit."

Rose said nothing, only contemplated the latest bit of information in silence. It made her most uneasy that she herself was not there to gauge their new apparent ally, although she hardly thought them as such. It wasn't she didn't trust Lucile's own judgment, but as her nature, she was one to be cautious, especially in the face of strangers who were more apt to be against them than for them.

"But, before they left, the supposed leader, or at least it seemed to me, told me that'd we'd meet again. I somehow knew this before she verbalized it though, and I have no doubt that we will. Of course, the difference will be whether it be a meeting of friends or foes…

"Either way, let it be how it will be, we can't ponder on it any longer" Rose said almost hastily. "If we meet them again, and by the sounds of it we will, it'll be then we decide." Although Rose said this, she knew it wouldn't stay her mind. She reckoned her mind would swirl around the recent revelations for the next few days, assessing viable options and possible future encounters. "And my sword?"

"It's on the side of the cabinet" Lucile replied, looking over at the large, multi-drawer construction. It was on the side farthest from Rose, the side she couldn't see.

"So that leaves what we must do now" Zack broke in, it was the first time he had spoken in over an hour. "Are we to continue our path to Shirley? This _test_?"

Rose nodded immediately. "I think it may be a test for us all, even I" Rose responded absently. Zack looked at her puzzled, and was about to ask her what she meant but she silenced him with her hand. "You'll understand soon enough, but for now, I would have us leave this place."

Zack glanced at Lucile, who was thinking the same thing he was. _I don't think your in any condition to move anywhere dear Rosy _was his thought, but he knew better he couldn't dissuade her, no matter what the danger. Yet he had to try, for he could never forgive himself if something did happen.

"Maybe you should rest up a while longer, we're in no real rush, and we'll only further stunt our progress if you further injure yourself and have to be carted here again." He said it with a soft, almost pleading tone that he hoped would find at least some sense.

"We are in a rush, as I'm sure you're aware, time is not on our side. Also, I'm sure our presence has alerted many, and lest we want a repeat of Hoax I think it' best we move away from large cities where we can be easily targeted." Zack agreed a little reluctantly, but he could hear the truth in her reasoning. If they did stay here too long, they would be sought out after, and many would die in the process. "And I'll be careful not to injure myself further, and thanks to the medical treatment I received form Lucile and the doctors, their not nearly as bad as it appears or have previously been."

"That I have no doubt" Zack half laughed, although it was dry, filled with no real witticism. "Are you going to at lest spend the rest of today to rest?"

"I suppose I will. But tomorrow, we will be traveling to Shirley's Shrine, and" she was cut off by Zack, who smiled and finished:

"Be sure to be up at dawn." Lucile snickered from behind them. Rose rolled her eyes, but Lucile thought even she felt a bit of the humor. "Anyway, we'll meet you at the front tomorrow morning. Be sure to rest up."

Lucile waved her hand gently, and they both shuffled out, closing the white door behind them. When the sound of the door closing echoed in Rose's head, a wave of sudden isolation overcame her, as if closing the door had stamped out that last flicker of light, and what awaited were all her demons, ready to devourer her.

_What's wrong with me? _She wondered as she rolled from side to side, trying to get comfortable. It seemed that while she was around her new friends, she didn't have time to worry about her own personal issues that she usually faced daily and yet now, after becoming once again familiar with presence of others, she felt almost scared to face them. _Is that all they are, just a distraction? Is that all he is? _She knew that wasn't true, just another conjured rationale to try and falsely justify her sudden reliance, and ideal that although she began to accept, didn't particularly please her. But it will be as it will be, regardless of all else, and as Rose began to drift off into an uneasy slumber, those thoughts recurred to her in her dreams.

* * *

"Ah, she's up" Zack greeted outside the hospital. Lucile was beside him, and rose was greeted by the flurry of voices that this commercial town was renowned for. Nothing had changed here either; it was still bursting with salesmen and tourists, all crowding and moving like the great sea. There were three levels of Lohan, which only made it more congested, the first of which was the lower market, where the poor, usually simple food and fruit merchants laid down their unstructured markets, also home to the fabled battle arena which warriors from all over Serdio and beyond gathered for the annual gladiator games. The second, of which was supported by large blanks of wooden floorboards housed the structural markets, places like weapon vendors and other commodities. A lot of the wood was worn, and it was any wonder to the trio that it never collapsed. This was split into two sides, each holding their own respective stores and houses, most of which were no larger then a single unit. The third and final floor, which was structured much the same way the second level was, wooden boards, was the richest part of town, where the rich and the wealthy merchants housed, as well as the famous Lohan hospital. These were usually no bigger then small units either, but the houses and merchants were arranged in such a way that one building has several levels, and as such it wasn't uncommon for one building to house three or four merchants, and the higher up you were, usually the wealthier you were as well.

"Let's move on, and try not to be fooled by any merchants who would seek to take advantage of ones… lack of fair pricing knowledge" Rose said cautiously. She was re-equipped with her sword and garbed in her usual outfit, but under it she still bore the restricting bandages. She still felt a little ginger, but thought all in all, she pulled up all right.

"In other words they'll rip you off in a wink of an eye" Zack remarked. Rose nodded and looked ahead, moving people, screaming merchants who all proclaimed the same thing, that they had the best and fairest prices. Most of them wore robes and turbans, but as to why was a mystery.

The three ventures downward, towards a set of stairs that led them to the middle of town. As they began to walk under a rickety bridge above them that connected the two halves, Zack began to notice how unique the buildings around him were. It was in fact his first time outside the hospital since he arrived, and while the ground around them appeared botched, the buildings around them certainly weren't. Most which were fashioned by some of the most glorious bricks and metals he had seen, not to mention the brilliant roofs which were made of dazzling tiles that came in an array of outstanding colours. It was almost like a poor yet rich town mixed together.

But that all changed once they reached the bottom level, and when they did they were met by a cloud of putrid aromas. It was filled by self set up markets, most of which looked so dirty the thought of actually buying food from them made Zack want to throw up. One had a self furnished sign which used a kind of disfigured representation of a pig to mark its intent, the various animals caged near a damaged wooden counter that looked though it housed a hundred diseases.

"Follow me, and don't respond to anyone who would try to barter with us" Rose commanded, and immediately began towards the western exit of the town. They were bombarded by several merchants, and they ignored them all, and when one who set their store up on no more then a large rug perused after them, Rose had to give a sharp warning, to which the male salesmen took immediately and disappeared.

When the reached the exit of town, marked by a large sign that was covered by an assortment of flyers and posters, Rose turned to them, eyeing them closely.

"Since we have to avoid the forest, we are in for a long hike. I hope you two are up to it." They both nodded, willing to follow their leader wherever they had to, heck, they had already gone over an active volcano, and she nodded back satisfactorily. She turned, and the three of them left the town of Lohan behind them, setting out for their next itinerary that held confrontations that would shock them all, and unravel mysteries that none of them could possible foresee.

* * *

**Notes: **Yet another latish submission, I apologize once again, and I shall try to make future updates with more quickness. Anyhow, as to who the leader of the band of masked marauders are, I have dropped a few hints as to who it may be, so see if you can try and figure it out ) And also, a nice welcome to my newest reviewer Nymphadora17 , who has joined the small err… bandwagon if that's what you'd call it, and of course, thanks to my constant reviewers. Anywho, happy readings .

- Michael.


	38. Chapter 38

**Chapter 38**

After journeying over the great mountain that led to the shrine, which took even longer then last time due to the fact they had to move around the giant nest as opposed to through it, they finally found themselves standing before the broken edifice. Upon entry Lucile's Dragoon Spirit shone out, resonating as if to acknowledge its past involvement with its original master, and then ceased.

"So this is the shrine" Zack mused as he looked around. It looked like it could have once been a magnificent structure in ages past, sitting above the flowing water, towering next to the green forestry surrounding it. Now, only remnants of what it once was stood broken and incomplete. The narrow path on what they now stand on, made of various broken white bricks and other materials, stood a few centimeters above the gushing water, leading further into the grove of shrubby forestry that had crawled around the damaged construction. In the water various pillars and other objects that once were apart of the shrine were visible, and several paths and stairs led into the water or into nothing, coming to a sudden dead end.

"Was this also a result of the Dragon Campaign?" Zack asked. Rose nodded, but said no more on the subject. Zack knew that it was still a very personal topic for her, and for her best friend to be buried here meant that it held some significance, or once did despite it's appearance, and took the hint and left it alone also.

"Where is this Shirley?" Lucile asked next, glancing around. Rose pointed to the North West, where the stream of water divided the land into two sides, one which still housed the devastated shrine, the other side seemingly nothing more then greenery.

"She's at the top" Rose enlightened, as she continued to survey the area. _What happened to the roaming monsters that made their home here? _Rose could see none, or hear none for that matter. Only white, green and blue remained visible, the ambient sound of the water rushing and the trees whistling the only sounds she could hear.

"Be careful. Last time I was here fiends housed themselves here" Rose warned uneasily.

"But I see none" Zack replied.

"That's why we're taking extra caution." Rose looked off into the entryway; it may have once been a small dome, but now only one side stood, and even that was tattered as green overgrowth made its home around the cracks and openings. They continued on, walking briskly into a more congealed area.

"Wow, what a place" Lucile remarked, and while inside looked no better then out, cracks and holes as well as broken pillars and other support still loomed but broken cart tracks were evident and strange mural like insignias that appeared on some of the more well kept walls and columns. The water still splashed around them, crashing against the missing parts of floor.

"Like a kind of maze" Zack though aloud, surveying the several different exits and entrances.

"We go straight ahead, up the tower" Rose informed, pointing the half broken stair case that led upwards towards a large, almost teetering tower that stood in front of them. The tower itself was in no perfect condition either.

"Lead on Rosie" Zack gestured with his hand, stepping back a fraction. Rose sighed and moved on, her steps echoing within the quietness of the area. Again Rose spotted no monsters, no native wildlife that had otherwise taken refuge in this peaceful area.

"I don't know whether to be amazed or horrified with this place" Zack commented as they strode on, climbing up the stairs carefully. Rose shrugged, as if his opinion was of no consequence.

"The damage this placed received during the campaign was not this serious. It appears the shrine's biggest enemy was time, slowly eroding a once magnificent human outpost into what you see before you."

Lucile had broken a part of the crumbled side she used to support herself, which nearly resulted in her falling off and plunging into the water below had Rose not been there to restore her balance.

"Careful. This place is very frail." Lucile nodded gingerly, looking over at the shockwave of ripples the fallen bricks had created.

The tower ascended into several levels, most of which were uninhabitable and consequently unreachable. It seemed to have once rounded itself into a circular building, and while each level appeared similar in design, neither Zack nor Lucile had any idea what it would be used for. The one thing that had been constant though was it was all light, shades of white, grey and silver. _A fitting tomb for the original owner of the White Silver Dragoon _Zack supposed inwardly.

As they continued to ascend the various stairways, Rose finally signaled them to a stop. "To progress, we will have to climb the ladder behind me which will take us to the next set of stairs"

"Geez, is stairs all this place is made of?" Lucile complained, rubbing the tops of her now tender legs. Rose ignored her companions protests, and began to climb the ladder, although ever so carefully. Not could they blame her, the rickety old thing looked like it could collapse at any second.

"Is it usually this deserted?' Zack asked, moving his head around.

"Save for the unusual absence of the monsters, yes. In fact, there are only a handful of people alive today who know of such a place." Rose glanced up and saw the sun beginning to wane behind the clouds that were just above the inevitable horizon that would soon mask it for another day. She guessed only a couple of hours of daylight left, and that was if they were lucky. "Let's quicken our pace, lest you want to be navigating through this crumbling shrine throughout the night." She knew that neither of them did, and even her herself didn't want to be trailing through here without the sun to unmask the dangerous breaks and traps that such an ancient structure would surely have, no matter how well she knew the place.

The three finally arrived at the last part of the shrine that led to Shirley's resting quarter. It was a thick, almost up hill flight of stair that aggravated the groans of disapproval from both Zack and Lucile. On either side of the base, their was a gold and silver angel like statue, the golden one to the left was facing northward, towards the top of the stairs, the silver one on the right facing left towards the golden statue. Beside them was nothing more then dense shrubbery.

"This is the last serious stairway" Rose announced although it did little please her two friends.

"I swear, if I ever have walk up another set of steps after we reach the top, I'll throw myself off this evil place" Zack remarked, groaning breathlessly.

"We still have the trip back down to consider" Rose replied dryly. "So you may as well cast yourself off now."

"So cold" Zack sulked in a low voice.

"Did you really expect any sympathy?" Lucile said before Rose could. Zack's face turned even sourer, and turned his eyes to the task he now had to climb.

"Let us be done with it then" he said with a sigh, and that was the last words uttered until they reached the top of the stairs.

* * *

"Do you really think it's alright to confront her yet? She won't be unconscious this time, and if we don't play this right she'd sooner kill us then give us a second chance" one of the grey figures, now standing outside the entrance to the shrine. The two of them stood aside from the other four, talking in a low voice that only they could hear. The leader put her hand up causally.

"We'll be fine, trust me" she reassured. The wind picked up and the grey leather suits that covered their entire body rustled a little.

"Will we be revealing ourselves this time?" the second one asked, his voice carrying a distinct masculinity that established he was indeed male.

"I think so, yes."

"And how will she take it?"

The female, the leader, seemed to consider it for a few moments before answering. "Like everything thing else, as a fact."

"How long do you think she'll be up there?" he asked again, his tone softening a fraction.

"One day at least, possibly two. Either way, we'll be here waiting for them when they come down." Her partner seemed satisfied with the answers he received, and proceeded to join the other four members who were talking amongst themselves.

"Rose, whatever you are doing out there, let it be quick" she whispered to herself. "I fear we don't have much time, and if we don't meet now, then I think we never will."

* * *

"And here we are' Rose announced standing in the middle of a circular platform, which (not surprisingly) was accessible by a dual flight of stairs, although one side was obstructed a pillar that may have once served as a support beam. Below it was a small walkway that led to the large stairway they had climbed earlier with the two gold and silver statues. Below them, flowing freely around what was left of the shrine was the ever present water that also buried a good portion of the top area they now stood on, and the mystery as of why with it. Beyond it was the constant green trees and bushes, along with the last gleams of sunlight shining through, signifying the end of another day, and the beginning of another night.

"Where is she?" Zack asked, setting his eyes upon the almost house like building that was at the end of the circle platform, a large almost tunnel like entryway stood, although it looked crippled and far from stable.

Before Rose could answer however, three long silver needle like projectiles shot out of the opening, missing them all narrowly. Zack and Lucile were at arms at once, Zack withdrawing his spear and Lucile assuming her battle stance. Rose however stood completely unfazed by the attack, raising her hand up to stop them.

"Drake, it is only me" she spoke casually. Silence ensured, and after a few moments, a gaunt figure approached, walking up cautiously, another round of those silver needles gleamed in its left hand. It seemed to survey the three, its face under the witch like hat that towered over his head squinting intently.

"You're one of her friends, who were here a while ago" he spoke, his voice high and almost impish. He was covered with dark leather garments that were tied to him with various belts and other restraining additives that made his movements completely silent, even to Rose's ears. Had Rose not already encountered the bandit earlier and his attack was intended to harm, there was a very good chance he would have succeeded.

"Who is that?" Zack asked, looking unimpressed as he sized up the smaller thief.

"Drake, a bandit who guards this area" Rose replied plainly. "He once tried to pillage the area, and apparently Shirley enticed him, and he took it upon himself to guard the shrine from other would be robbers."

"How ironic" Lucile replied. Drake's features were dark and unattractive, his sharp nose and small eyes were comparable to a goblin, which coincidently was exactly what he sounded like.

"I trust Shirley has returned?" Rose questioned, completely ignoring the fact he still hadn't relinquished his battle stance. The bandit looked at her with a mixture of mistrust and malice, the hand holding the silver projectiles raising threateningly a fraction.

"Let's not have a repeat of last time" Rose warned, her hand dropping to her sword. "I haven't the patience for mercy this time."

Drake scoffed, but knew the truth; if she really wanted to continue, he wouldn't be able to stop her. "Fine, but I'm watching you, the meathead and the brat closely" he spat scornfully.

"You're one to talk, mister beauty contest winner over here" Lucile rebuked. Drake eyes flashed with rage.

"You better watch your tongue you git or I'll tear it off." Lucile laughed, provoking him to follow up on his threat.

"Enough!" The sharpness of Rose's demand brought on an immediate silence that no one, not even Drake, was wiling to be the first to break.

"My, my, with all this shouting it's any wonder anyone can find any peace and quiet" a familiar voice echoed from within. Rose's head snapped towards the entrance behind Drake at once. What followed was a light ghostly figure which would be identified as the remnants of Rose's oldest friend. Only her face, although ghastly was exposed, the rest (Zack made particular note of her she seeming lack legs, her body floating apparently on nothing, although whether that was just an ability she had with her legs hidden behind her tattered robe or not he didn't know) of her body was laden with a bright white and blue robe that bore several rips and tears. Under it appeared to be another set of clothing, but it did well to hide her body, only her ethereal pale face, large brown eyes and dazzling auburn hair that fell to her shoulders were visible. It almost looked like a girl who wore a bathrobe too large for her, covering her legs and hands.

"It's been a while, not counting the time you saved me from the moon and disappeared again" Rose started, her tone more relaxed. The ghost nodded, a smile creasing her lips, and although Zack never questioned its sincerity, it came across a little wan. _Well what do you expect? She is dead after all_ Zack's mind intruded.

"Good to see you are well" she responded earnestly, moving past Drake to confront the group. She glanced at Zack and Lucile, her smile brightening a touch. Zack and Lucile both thought she would have been rather attractive during her living existence, although that's not to say she wasn't now, even in death. "And with new companions I see."

Rose, who had momentarily forgotten that Shirley was not affiliated with either of the two, introduced them promptly.

"This is Zack. I met him in Fletz. To cut a long story short, one which I'm sure you'll hear later, he inherited the Red Eye Dragon Spirit before recently losing it. He can be a goofball at-- well… a lot of the time."

Zack schooled his features into that of feign hurt, grinning mischievously. "Now, now, Rosie I can't help it if you're deprived of any sense of comedy" Zack jested. Rose sighed and Shirley laughed merrily. She decided on that moment she liked Zack.

"A person with a good sense of humor would do you well Rose. Gods knows, as your friend pointed out you don't have one."

Rose ignored the comment and continued with the introductions. "This here is Lucile." Lucile stepped forward and bowed her head slightly, as was customary where she came from when addressing someone of high respect. Her Dragoon Spirit gleamed once more and Shirley raised her eyebrows with interest.

"The next generation White Silver Dragoon Knight I see" she said. "How interesting."

"I heard you were the first possessor of the spirit. As such, I would humbly request some advice. Being new to this, I would appreciate any knowledge you can offer, and considering you were the first, I'm sure you have plenty." Another wave of laughter consumed Shirley, and Lucile had trouble finding what made the situation so comical.

"Dear, you don't have to act so formal I am a mere spirit, not a queen" she explained warmly. "And yes, I would be glad to offer any assistance I can."

"I am ever thankful."

Shirley liked Lucile as well, and she could immediately sense her heart was pure, and her soul remained untainted. A textbook candidate if there ever was one.

"Shirley..." a concerned voice from behind her murmured. She turned to Drake and smiled reassuringly.

"Worry not Drake, they are friends and mean no harm." The bandit nodded, his eyes flashing over the three one last time (His eyes sparked particularly when they met Lucile's) and he turned and began to leave.

"I'll be inside or patrolling the parameter if you need me."

They all watched as Drake left, no one speaking until he was out of view. "Please forgive him, although he comes across as a little rude, he has protected this sanctuary for years passed. He is also good company for what would otherwise be a lonely dwelling." They all agreed, to which sparked Lucile's next question.

"He seems… quite taken with you" she remarked. Shirley laughed uneasily.

"Oh… that." She didn't say anymore, and Lucile wondered if she felt a little guilty for binding him here, and although she thought she'd release him if he ever sought freedom, she still felt responsible.

"In any event, she would do well to be tested by the original Dragoon holder" Rose said, putting the conversation back on the tracks it was beginning to deviate from. Shirley nodded.

"I don't think she'll be the only one tested." Zack looked at Rose, then at Lucile nervously. Does she mean he'd be tested as well? But what for?

"It's getting dark, and while I have nothing that will adequately supply the likes of you three you are free to use whatever part of the shrine pleases you. I apologize for the lack of human necessities like food and beds, but when you're someone like me you don't expect visitors."

"We'll be fine, we came prepared" Rose replied sternly. "But, I think it's time you and I had a bit of a chat." Rose looked at her two allies. "You two will have to excuse us for a while; I'd like to take this opportunity to talk things out alone. So find whatever you can to occupy yourselves to then.

"Yeah, of course" Zack answered, but the thought of wondering alone in this place during the dark frightened him a little. "Just call us when you finish."

"We will don't worry" Shirley assured brightly. Rose and Shirley turned towards the cavern in front of them, leaving Zack and Lucile to their own devices.

"Well, this is great" Zack expressed in exasperation.

"Let them be. Rose needs this I think. Let's not forget she carries a heaver burden then both of us" Lucile persuaded softly. Zack sighed in resignation.

"It's just… we should be out there, trying to stop Wen and he rest of Sandora from causing any more harm. I know we're only three people, and I know we hold what he is after and to give them up would have disasters effects, but holing up while Rose has a nice little chit chat to one of her dead friends isn't going to help."

"It's more than that and you know it" Lucile shot back with the same softness, yet it held a firm edge. "I may not know Rose as well as you do, but it's easy to see she herself is running out of ideas on what we should do. While Wen may not be succeeding in gaining our own spirits" Zack broke in, reminding her that he was able to attain his, but she ignored him and continued on. "We have only just been able to defend his own advances, and at a heavy price. From here, our next move is critical, and will determine whether we succeed or fail. There will be no in between this time, and Rose doesn't know what option to take." This made sense to Zack, perfect sense in fact, and he was glad for the presence of a second calmer mind.

"So, she's now stuck at a cross road." Lucile paused, seemingly to think on her next sentence. "Not a cross road, a multitude of roads that all intertwine. Only very few of them will not lead us to annihilation, and not knowing exactly which roads will or won't, she's confiding in her best friend in hopes she'll put her in the right direction."

Zack fell quiet, reflecting Lucile's observances. "You really think so?" She nodded.

"I do. And what makes it harder I think, is it's not just her life that is at stake."

"Yeah, most of the world is" Zack replied. Lucile looked at him in the way one does when they answer a question so wrong they wonder how they came up with the answer.

"What?" Zack asked, his hand going to the back of his neck. She shook her head, dismissing the subject. _It's your life she worries most about _is what she was getting at, and she didn't know whether he was that flat out oblivious and dense or he avoided the subject on purpose. She had some strange idea by the way he moved his hand towards his neck, which he often did in a gesture of nervousness, that it was the latter.

"Why didn't she just say so?' Zack inquired.

"Do you really think she would come out and say she was going here to seek help? She is our leader Zack and whether she will admit it or not, she has taken up the role of leadership and as such, she fears it would appear weak if she admitted she needed help. She has too much pride."

"… You're spot on" he agreed, looking into the dwelling room of Shirley, hearing the faint voices of their leader and her oldest friend exchanging stories. "I just hope it doesn't end up killing her."

* * *

As the night wore on, Rose retold the events from when she had first met Zack. They sat in her ruined sanctum, which housed various broken statues that looked like giant sitting cats. The floor was solid at least, and her initial worry that it would collapse and fall into the river surrounding them (as what a lot of the other parts of the floor had done Rose guessed by their abrupt end) were soon put to rest. Rose sat on her knees, and although the stone floor wasn't as uncomfortable as she first assumed, she thought she'd have sore knees all the same when she finished her recollection of her journey so far.

Shirley made a few inquires into Zack, more specifically her feelings towards him, to which Rose would admonish and tell her if she answered all of her questions she'd never finish her recount. Of course, this was just a way to avoid voicing her feelings, but in any event her excuse had succeeded for the most part. Rose had an idea though that Shirley had already gained an understanding of their relationship; she had a knack for doing that.

And as the hours passed, Rose guessed around three or four, Rose's tale finally came to a close. Lucile had listen to every detail intently, not once showing signs of disinterest.

"Sounds like another journey for you. This would be the... fourth now? Including your pilgrimage as the Black Monster?"

"I'm just lucky I guess" Rose replied sourly.

"I think you'll do what's best in the end" Shirley comforted.

"Did I ask for advice?" Rose asked sharply. Lucile giggled.

"Then why else are you here?" Rose sighed and looked up towards the cracked ceiling where shimmers of the pale moon shone through and on to them.

"It's no longer just my own life involved. The lives of many others ride on how this turns out as well." Shirley tilted her head to the side in puzzlement.

"Trepidation is not a feat normally shown by you" she expressed.

"I know, and that's half of the problem." Shirley smiled lightly, attempting to put her friends mind at ease.

"I think it's good that you take others in consideration before you act. But I can see that you are weary, and I urge you to sleep here for the night. This is an amazing place to reflect, and I think it would do well to help clear your mind and unmask your path."

To that she could not argue. She didn't know about the whole reflection thing, but she sure as hell was tired.

"Then I will. First I'll meet back up with Zack and Lucile and tell them to come here and rest as well." Her friend put up a hand, shaking her head softly.

"I'll tell them, but I think it'll do you good to sleep now." Rose examined her friend for a moment, and then agreed.

"Go easy on them, there still fresh" was the last thing Rose said before she undid her sleeping bag, and surrendered herself to the realm of sleep. She didn't know whether it was the place she slept in or her tiredness, but she couldn't remember a time she had fallen asleep so quickly and completely.

* * *

Zack and Lucile camped not far from where Rose and Shirley were. They sat at the bottom step that led to the path that descended off the highest point of the building they now stood on. Drake had joined them, at first meeting them with snide comments about how he was watching them and if they tried anything he'd be quick to act, but in time he too sat with them, conversing contently.

"So how did you wind up here?" Lucile asked him. He shrugged.

"I was once a bandit. Not so much by choice, believe it or not I do have morals, but I was kicked out of Lohan… well, forced out rather. My mother had an affair and when my father found out I was a bastard child, he beheaded my mother and sent me on the streets." Lucile grimaced, her sympathy rising to new heights. "So I wondered from place to place, trying to steal what fortunes I could. I eventually found this place, in which I climbed the highest point in hopes that all the treasures were kept there. In was then I met Shirley, who changed my life. She had a certain air about her, a certain resonance that I confided in at once. I told her my past, and she wept for me, the most beautiful tears I had ever seen. It was then she apologized and told me that her shrine already been pillaged, and if not she'd freely give me what goods she had. It was then I just... took it upon myself to be her loyal guarding, guarding the sanctity of this place from the other corrupted bandits that would surely lack the remorse I showed."

"Do you get any? Thieves I mean." Lucile inquired. Drake nodded.

"We get a few, more then I thought we would. But when I'm not fending off robbers, I keep her company. In all honesty, I couldn't think of a better place I'd rather be then here." Lucile was touched, and for the grouchy exterior he exudes, he has a rather sensitive core.

Zack meanwhile was preoccupied in his own thought, about what Lucile had mentioned earlier. He stayed uncharacteristically quiet, which grabbed Lucile's attention.

"You alright?" she asked, looking at him with concern. He had been looking down at the ground the whole time, and it took Lucile two attempts to actually gain his attention.

"Yeah... just thinking is all." He let out a yawn, and as it often does, it sent out a chain reaction, following on to Lucile and even Drake.

"I think it's time we called it a night." She turned to Drake. "Thank you for sharing your story. It must have been hard."

"No, I'm not simple minded like you and dwell on things that cannot be changed" he insulted, but it sounded a little lighter then his usual slurs, and Lucile forgave him for it as he left without another word.

"That Drake" she mused as she unrolled her own sleeping bag at the bottom of the steps. Zack had already done his, and was preparing to get inside. The last few days had taken a toll on them all, and were all eager for a decent nights sleep.

"Don't worry about anything until the morning" Lucile encouraged. "You'll be no good if you're all worn out before we do anything."

"I know I know" Zack said, letting out another drawn out yawn. They both said their goodnights, and were asleep just as their heads hit their pillows.

* * *

Sometime later into the night, it mustn't have been much for the moon was still high in the sky; Zack was roused awake by sound of Rose's voice. Far away at first, her voice slowly came into waking clarity, and with a yawn, he sat up, the cool air around them making him shiver.

"What is it?" he asked drowsily. She was on her knees, her face full of worry and concern. Or that's what it looked like to Zack upon first inspection, but as the haze of clouding weariness began to fade, he realized he had been crucially mistaken.

She sat next to him, right next to him. Close enough so their bodies were touching, their shoulders only a few inches apart. This was when the first of Zack's internal warning sirens began to let off.

"I couldn't sleep" she replied in an almost seductive tune, followed by an unheard melody. _What the hell is up with her?" _he wondered with growing anxiety. He turned to a sleeping Lucile who rested a few meters away, but all she did was stir. _That women could sleep through a horde of stampeding buffalo _he thought inwardly. He turned back to Rose, who hadn't moved and had her gaze set on his with starry eyes. He shifted uncomfortably.

"Umm, what are you doing out here?" he spoke with all the steadiness he could muster which he guessed wasn't much. She rested her head on his shoulder, her hands wrapping around his back and upper sternum. "Had a bad dream" she replied with that same strange tone which sounded like a passing dream of a kind, surreal almost. _But I'm not dreaming. _And that much he knew.

Things only became more problematic as she pushed her weight on to him, causing him to fall flat on his back, her still on top of him. She had the awareness to push him onto the cushioning of the sleeping bed, which meant she done it intentionally and hadn't fallen asleep. After a few moments of leaving her head nestled in his chest, she rose, but kept her lower body firmly on his as if to straddle him.

"Rose, what are you doing?" he asked, all calmness now forgotten. She smiled roguishly, and for a second time Zack tilted his head in the direction of Lucile, only to find she was still in a deep slumber. _Something is wrong. Even Lucile should be awake by a commotion this close to her. But more importantly…._

Rose removed her leather top, revealing only the white bandages that bound her injures. Zack look at her in growing horror. "Rose, stop" he began, his eyes widening as her hands went to tug on her white bindings. For a moment he was stunned into a kind of dumbfounded paralysis, but was able to move before she could ebb away at the last remnants of clothing that would leave her top half completely exposed.

He shot his hands towards her own, grasping her wrists and pulling them away from her body, although it lacked any real restraint. "Rose, what the hell has gotten into you?" She looked at him with mixed confusion and irritation. "Just relax and enjoy" she purred enticingly. She was able to break free of the weak hold, her hands reassuming what she had initially started. Zack shook himself out of the spellbound like trance she had put him in, snatching her wrists once again with more authority this time.

"Rose, stop it" he cried, but she continued to struggle under his restraint. He soon found it was a battle he was beginning to lose, as his grip loosened her hand managed to travel half way towards the bandages around her chest that she intended to strip away. _This isn't you, now way is it the Rose I know _his mind cried, reeling under the pressure Rose's body had put him under. Yet in every way she was, right from her cold blue eyes (that weren't so cold now) to her natural fragrance. She looked down at him, deciding to give up on her initial goal, and pursue another one instead.

She moved her head towards his, her eyes beginning to close, and he feared he knew what was next to come. She push her face forwards until he could feel her breath on his, her lips guiding towards his like some kind of homing device. _Damn it this stops now!_

"Enough!" he bellowed, and Rose's eyes snapped open at once, her face pausing. Zack moved his back, which was only a fraction due to the floor below him. "I don't know who you are, but if you do not get off me in the next few seconds, there will be trouble." His voice sounded commanding as well as threatening, all former hesitations dissolved. Rose's face turned blank, and then a broad smile appeared. She hopped off him immediately, standing up wand walking back up the steps a few paces. Zack sat up, confused at what was going on. Before he had too much time to ponder it, the answers came to him directly in the form of the women in front of him. Rose disappeared in a shroud of smoke, and what remained there was not Rose, but a visage that could only be Shirley.

"What the heck?" he voiced in bewilderment. She smiled brightly, clasping her hands on front of her.

"You pass." She said.

"Pass what?" he asked perplexed.

"The test of course." He looked at her queerly, and then the conversation in which she declared all three would be tested came back to him.

"You mean _that _was the test? A test of what exactly?" Zack questioned, trying not to let his raising anger surface.

"It was a test of your ability to not give in to your desires, as strong as they may be." Zack frowned, as if the victim of some child's prank. She saw this, and elaborated further.

"It was a test to see if you could put away the desires of your body, when your mind, not fogged by that of humanistic lust. I wanted to see if you could put your body aside and let your mind guide you, even when pressured by a force you know is not of whom it appears." She paused momentarily. "From what I hear, such tactics are not above Wen."

He slowly understood what he was being tested on, and why Rose was the subject. "You know my feelings towards her, and as such, she was your apparatus, knowing that if anything was to blind me, it would be her." She nodded lightly.

"And it's good to see you were more then successful. You are a noble friend indeed to not take advantage." Zack rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"I wouldn't say that exactly" he replied quickly. A question then dawned on him, and it was his turn once again to ask. "What if I did give in?"

Shirley winked at him playfully. "Well then, we'd have a problem wouldn't we" she said, looking over at the waning moon, then at Lucile. "But no more questions, I have more work set out for me yet." Before Zack could even hope to get a work out, she pressed both of her palms on either side of his temple, and a haze of irresistible sleep consumed him immediately as she guided his slumbering head to the pillow of his sleeping bag. "You did well" she whispered satisfactorily, and then turned her attention to her second target.

* * *

Rose awoke, her eyes fluttering open at once, and for a moment she felt the sensation that she was under attack. Scanning the scenery quickly, she let out a breath of relief to find she was the only one in the room. When that fact had settled in, she felt the bitter disappointment of being falsely alerted out of a beautiful sleep she may never again experience. Sighing, she spent a few minutes looking at the dark corner of the room, before she fell back down, hoping that sleep would once again claim her, although she knew even if it did, it wouldn't be like the sleep she had just had.

* * *

Lucile felt a wind whip against her, as an internal throb, almost like a heartbeat began to radiate from her body, which startled her out of her sleep. She opened her bleary eyes, and was rested just in front of her was a fist, covered by a familiar dark glove that wore an insignia she knew all to well. As her vision began to slowly illuminate, she saw an old tanned man in front of her grinning mischievously.

"Good to know my training still has its grip on you" the gruff yet amused voice spoke. At first Lucile thought it a dream, but as her surroundings began to feel all too real, she told herself better. She was then filled with a sense of giddy disbelief.

"Master Haschel?" she asked, uncertain.

His upper lip moustache, dark and thick revealed a smile under it as his hand returned to behind his back, clasping as they always did in anticipation.

"Glad you still remember" he replied softly. He was still in his typical violet Rogue uniform, which wasn't so unlike her own save for the variance in colour. He still wore that dark headband that contrasted his otherwise much tanned skin as it vanished behind his similarly coloured cascading hair.

"How are you alive?" she asked in raising excitement. Was he here? Was her old master, the veteran of the Rogue Martial Arts actually here in front of her?

"Did you really think I'd die? Me? The master of the Rogue Martial Arts? Ha!" he spat, thrusting his fist into the air as if to strike an unseen enemy. Her eyes began to brighten with a happiness that will soon be crushed, and for that, Shirley would be forever regretful. This would hurt her much more than the trial she made for Zack would. She just hoped she wasn't going too far.

Millions of questions flew through Lucile's mind, so many in fact that she was rendered speechless, unable to pick a way to reply. It all dissolved in the pure ecstasy she felt that her idol, the one she looked up to and hoped to one day surpass as the Master of the Rouge Martial Arts was actually here in front of her.

"Master, I –" she was cut off from Haschel. Shirley wanted to get this over with as quick as possible, before any further detrimental, and most probable permanent damage could be done.

"Listen Lucile, and please of not interrupt me if you still consider me your master." Lucile stopped instantly, and her own alarm began to rise and mirror that of her masters.

"Rouge is in danger of another attack, one that will cause our town to be burned to the ground and never again seen."

"What? Again? Why?" she cried in panic.

"Sandora need more land for their operations, and one out of the way. Rogue is isolated, has much land as fits that requirement perfectly. Sandora ships are rumored to be sailing there as we speak. I ask that you accompany me back, and help with our defense."

It took a few moments for the realization and comprehension of what Haschel had just explained to kick in, and when it did her face shook with horror, and not just because of the possible demolition of her hometown, but because of the choice that was placed in front of her. She cringed inwardly. _Oh god, not this, please anything but this _she cried to herself.

"Well? Are you coming? We haven't the time to waste on loitering." Inwardly Shirley cursed herself for her harshness. This was going to emotionally destroy her, she could tell that by the expressions on the young women's face. But she had a job to do, and she owed Rose much.

"M-master.. I.. I.." she didn't know how to say she couldn't. His anger, his unhappiness and mostly his cold disappointment was something she swore she'd see in her master's eyes since the small time training with him. Yet now she was faced with abandoning her duties as a Dragoon Knight, or abandoning her home town and former master.

"Master... I'm in a delicate situation right now… I'm now a Dragoon Knight" she began, fighting back tears.

"Good! That will further help our defenses" the older man said happily. Now Shirley herself felt like crying, and even thought she could if not for the current circumstances.

"No... I'm with Rose and we're on our own journey… a very important journey that will determine the lives of many more then one town." She tried desperately not to sob, not in front of him of all people. Yet he didn't know how hard he was making this, the conundrum she was now in.

"You are?" he replied, and when she nodded, closing her eyes briefly, the hard, cold, disappointed probing eyes he had expected did not surface.

_I could probe on further if I so decided to, I could perhaps even persuade her to believe, but... this is enough, I can't bring myself to hurt her anymore _Shirley thought.

"I can maybe try and convince Rose to help a hand, or try and intercept… but... If I can't then I'm afraid…" tears did fall, she was unable to stop them now. Again she expected the relentless eyes that she had heard much about when a student failed, ones that even appeared in front of his daughter, but they didn't come. Instead, ones full of sympathy and understand materialized.

"I understand Lucile" he replied calmly. "You have a job to do, a promise you obviously have committed yourself too, and so your honor. That, above all is what you must keep, and if you were to forfeit that, even to the problem I have put forward, I would be truly ashamed."

Lucile looked up with unbelieving eyes, and when he crouched down to her level, she shot out of her bag and slung her arms around him, hugging her closely.

"Thank you Master, you are the best!" she cried during sobs. She felt a kind of warm vapor surround her, but she kept her eyes firmly shut, absorbing the moment. Then guilt at choosing her duties over her homeland began to bite at her, and she pulled away slowly, keeping her eyes closed until the embrace was broken.

"What about Rogue-" she stopped as she saw an unhappy Shirley hover in front of her.

"What happened to Master Haschel?" she asked nervously, trying desperately to collect herself. The new found confusion made it hard. Shirley sighed unhappily.

"Haschel was never really here. It was me testing your loyalty to your responsibilities" she slowly explained. Lucile's expression transcended the rage Shirley had expected into a melancholy sadness. Shirley thought this expression worse.

"I apologize, it wasn't fair to use him" she professed, bowing her head slightly.

"No, I understand" she said, although Lucile wasn't entirely sure she did. She felt like she was still in a haze, like someone who just woke up from a dream.

"For what it's worth, you passed, you weighed necessary importance on your role as a Dragoon, yet you didn't completely neglect your responsibilities of your homeland." Lucile nodded, seemingly in another world.

"Do you think he's…" she didn't finish. It would sound childish to ask, and she knew that he was really dead, and to think otherwise would just be fooling herself, and she didn't want to live in a reality of false hopes or illusions. "Never mind."

"Speak dear, speak your mind." Lucile first resisted the idea, but thought it could do no harm. She could ask, even if just to put her mind at complete ease.

"Is Haschel really dead?" she asked tentatively.

"I can't say" she answered, but Shirley did know, she felt his passing as she felt the many others. She didn't want plant a seed of false hopefulness, but after she had been through, she couldn't bring herself to say it. At times like this, she really wished she possessed some of the straight bluntness Rose did.

"But remember, dead doesn't always mean end. I mean, look at me" she encouraged. Lucile smiled a little.

"Thank you" she said grimly. Shirley waved it off; she didn't deserve to be thanked.

"But now it is time you seep I think." She pressed her hands on the sides of Lucile's head, much the same way she did Zack, and while she put up some mild resistance at first, she succumbed to the forced slumber.

"I'm sorry" she whispered to her, then looked away into the distance. Her work had been done, and she supposed she should prepare the news for Rose if she was awake. Yet she thought Rose already knew they would pass, if not, then she wouldn't have bothered with them in the first place.

Slowly Shirley wonder her way back towards the place she made her dwelling.

* * *

Rose didn't find any sleep after all, and so she lay, staring at the side of the cracked building. She didn't think she'd find nay more sleep tonight, but she wished she could rid herself of the boredom she now faced. Even her own mind seemed to have taken a vacation, as it troubled her none.

Rose was alerted by the sound of faint footsteps. She turned around, her head facing the entrance. A figure emerged, but even her keen eyes could only make out a faint silhouette in the darkness. The figure drew closer, and she could make out a mob of unruly dark blonde hair. Her alarm intensified a little. It appears her boredom may yet be solved.

When the figure walked past the center of the room, she could see the man properly, and who it really was thanks the moonlight that shimmered brightly from the holes above. Although he did have blonde hair, her first (and somewhat nervous) assumption that it could possibly be Dart had been proven incorrect. Her eyes widened for a moment as they met his blue eyes, eyes she felt she hadn't seen in eons.

"It's been a while" Zeig spoke softly. Rose's eyes narrowed sharply, before looking away.

"I'm in no mood for games Shirley." A cloud of smoke appeared, leaving behind the perpetrator.

"Didn't think it'd work on you" she said playfully.

"How did they go?" Rose asked.

"They both satisfy, and even went beyond. But you expected this I assume." Rose nodded. "Lucile is a little distressed though, she had a stronger connected to Haschel then you let on." It wasn't anger in her usual calm and serene voice, but there was a certain edge to it.

"She'll be fine, don't worry, she's a warrior just as we are." Shirley thought to rebuke the response, but thought it'd do no good. Rose hadn't changed all that much after all it seemed.

"The only question left is what you are going to do now." Rose paused, and realized in horror she hadn't another plan of action. Coming here was here itinerary, but now that it has been reach, and the objective now completed, the idea of what to do next has seemingly escaped her.

Her silence said it all, and Shirley knew immediately. "If you would not sleep, then let us speak some more, and perhaps you will find your way" the former Dragoon Knight suggested. And so they did. They spoke until dawn, sometimes about future plans, other times about past adventures and memories. Rose would later reflect that this would be some of the last peaceful moment she would experience before the whole ordeal was over. Almost the calm before the oncoming storm, or hurricane as it would later turn out.

* * *

Lucile and Zack were up earlier then Rose predicted, and while the sun began to rise, the four of them spoke until it was high enough in the sky to illuminate what was in front of them, although Rose still hadn't thought of where they would travel, and that worried her greatly. As it would soon turn out, she didn't have to. External forces would once again point them in the direction they needed to go.

Drake shot through the room they were all conversing in, which of course was that of Shirley's dwelling. He glided through hastily, and when he reached them he was panting rapidly.

"Shirley, we have visitors" he said between heavy breaths. Shirley's eyes raised a little as she glanced at her friend. Rose already was suspecting the worst.

"What do they look like" Rose asked fiercely.

"They were all clothed in grey, even their faces. I think there were five or six in total, but there could be more."

"It's them" Lucile chimed in. "The one's who took us to Lohan." Rose's eyes flashed with intense anticipation. That look usually lead to one thing, death.

"Then I think it's time we meet them" she spoke calmly, yet she thought there was almost a hint of excitement in that voice. Lucile found nothing exciting about the situation, for if they decided to attack, they had at least six, and we have three, four if you want to include Drake, but she didn't think Drake would lift a finger to help them; no. He would be more then happy for them to kill themselves. On top of that, Rose was still injured.

"Do you expect a violent confrontation?" Zack asked. Rose shrugged.

"We'll see soon enough, but be ready for anything." She turned to the bandit. "Lead us to them." Drake shot her an uneasy gaze. "And try nothing foxy, I'd soon behead you if I suspect as such." The bandit grunted, but seemed to oblige.

"But they seem to be after you, so this is your fight not mine unless they endanger this shrine" he assured.

"I understand" she agreed. Rose didn't really think they would be any danger to this sanctum, after all it would be them they wanted, and them they would get, for good or ill. Everything went silent for a moment.

"Well? Lead on" Rose gestured, and he did.

* * *

They climbed all the way to the bottom of the shrine, as it turned out they were camped just at the entrance. They got to the path that led out back towards the entrance, and it was this that marked Drake's leave.

"I'll go no further" he said. Rose nodded in agreement.

"Send Shirley our regards." Drake nodded, although whether he actually would Rose could only wonder doubtfully. "And look after her." She added. He nodded in acknowledgment again, and once she said no more, he left, scurrying back to the place he had to guard.

"Alright, I'm sure you all know the drill, be careful, and follow me lead." They both agreed, and continued forward, into the camp of the unknown grey intruders.

There was in fact six, but as soon as Rose had walked out the broken dome like tunnel way which spilled into the forests, she was greeted by the first of the several grey trespassers. They had camped along the tin broken walkway between the water around them that led down the mountain back to Lohan, some eating, others talking. The one who approached them requested them to stay, and another one appeared before them, this one seemingly the leader.

"It's been a while, Rose" the captain spoke, the voice definitely feminine, on the verge of girlish. The mention of her name put her even more on guard, if at all possible.

"You have a few seconds to reveal yourself, before I take action" Rose shot sternly, her gaze cold and calculating. She would jump at any sign of hostility.

Slowly, the women brought her hands to hear head, untying the lace that bound the mask to her head from behind her, then pulled it off, dropping it to the ground. Roses eyes widened in shock when she discovered the identity of who stood in front of her. Lucile and Zack looked at her uneasily.

"What is it Rose?" Zack asked, baffled by her look of astonishment.

"Greetings" the now unmasked women began. "I am Shana, happy to make your acquaintance."

* * *

**Notes: **A much larger chapter in comparison to the rest, I know. I didn't expect it to be this big but... well; there was a lot to write about. It'll be interesting to know who did suspect correct about the grey leader; I hoped to hint in the prior chapter without making it too obvious. Anyway, enough ramblings (which seem to have became all too common with the latest chapters), and I hope you enjoyed the chapter, as I think the following chapters will really start to pick up towards the story's climax.

- Michael.


	39. Chapter 39

**Chapter 39: Interlude 2 - Revelations**

Now Zack joined Rose with a look of disbelief, and so did Lucile to a lesser extent. They had both heard the stories about Shana, and while not much was elaborated, enough was to know she was presumed murdered. Yet here she stood, in front of them, very much alive.

To Rose, she looked a little different, her cheeks were a little higher, her eyes a little smaller, her lips more creased and thin and her hair shorter and a little lighter. All but the latter came across as strange to Rose, and while she knew it was Shana before she had announced it, she looked very different. Too different, key features were changed in ways they should not, and could not be. It was almost looking at a twin, with the subtle enough difference to tell apart from close, yet easy enough to mistake at a glance or from afar. That wasn't the only thing different though, and as later events would verify, she had lost her innocence.

"I thought you were dead" Rose spoke with lips that felt although they had been iced. Shana nodded solemnly.

"Was once so, yes." This only further confused the three, and Shana could see it visibly.

"It's a long story" she started, then chuckled at how cliché it sounded. _How many times has Rose heard that line before? _She thought dryly.

"I would expect so" Rose replied, trying her best to resume her indifferent exterior. Under the circumstances, Zack and Lucile thought she did amazingly well. She turned to Lucile.

"And we meet again as well." Lucile didn't quite know what to say to this, and so she tried to greet as casually as possible.

"And you must be the one called Zack. You were in some trouble, but it's good to see you're alive and well." Zack nodded and thanked her for the assistance she had offered. Rose in the meantime grew impatient.

"So how are you here?" she asked sharply. Rose didn't know if she truly trusted what was in front of her or not.

"I think we should venture over towards the entrance, where we have soft land to sit on. I have a camp with fire there, and it would be more fitting to talk." Rose sighed and agreed, and so the three of them followed to the border between the forest and the shrines entrance. A campfire was indeed burning brightly, and they sat around it, forming a sort of square. The other five masked members came and sat near Shana, but none of them revealed their identities as Shana had.

"I'll start from the top I guess. This will hopefully unravel a great deal about Wen and Sandora, as well as who is really behind it." She took a breath, let it out, and then began.

"When Melbu Frama was defeated we all went back to Bales to celebrate. Albert was keen to go back to his throne, and he threw a grand celebration for our victory, and for our losses and sacrifices." She paused momentarily. "Oh Rose, you should have been there, it was amazing."

Rose stopped her. "Before you continue, I need proof of your identity. Shana looked at her, and then smiled a little.

"Of course." She stood up, walked over to Lucile, and just as it had in the presence of Shirley, the White Silver Dragoon Spirit resonated. After a few seconds it even began to levitate, and when Shana extended her hand and opened her palm, the silver stone rested on it, and slowly faded. For a moment Rose thought it was going to abandon its new found master in place for its old one. But apparently that wasn't the case. She closed her hand around it, shutting her eyes momentarily to soak up its pulsing white magic, and perhaps the memories of past times that came flooding back, and handed it back to its rightful owner, as hard as it was.

"Is that proof enough?" Shana asked smiling. Rose nodded as she went back to her spot and sat down, continuing her story as if never interrupted. At that point Rose had no doubt it was the real Shana in front of them. Dragoon Spirit's only gleam when not willed by their masters for two reasons: Either in recognition for a new host or when in the presence of a former master, all most as a kind of remembrance. There were a lot more to the dragon's spirit that resides inside the orb then many know, and Rose had both the scars and the memories to prove as such.

"Anyway, the celebration went on for several days. After it ended, we went our separate ways. Dart and I went back to Seles, Haschel went to Rogue, Albert stayed in Bales, Meru returned to Donau, Miranda sailed to Deningrad and Kongol went back to his home. Our new found peace didn't last long though, and not long after we were all summoned back to castle in Bales by request of Albert. Al that is to say except for Miranda, who remained at the Crystal Palace." Shana's tone began to deepen, almost into a somber like quality. "That's when we first met Wen."

Rose nodded, remembering the recount from Amika. So far they added up the same, and it would now become interesting to see if there will be any discrepancies between the two.

"We were well aware of rising factions within the likes of Sandora, willing to take over the castle. Albert tried to negotiate a peace treaty, but was rejected by the newly crowned king Hytas who managed to rise among the ranks. Wen, who by then had the disguise as a peace group, became a trusted ally of Albert, almost to the point of an unofficial minister or chancellor. He persuaded us all into his cause, claiming he wants peace and democracy to reign all over Serdio. We all foolishly brought into it like mindless sheep. Meru was the only one who held any objections towards his intentions, but we thought them naive and unwarranted. Oh, how foolish we were."

"Wen is the master of illusions and fake realities. You weren't the only ones affected by his swaying tongue." Zack piped in. "That's the strongest gift he has, even more so then the blade he wields. Many have fallen under his spell."

"But it was our duty, our responsibility to see trough such guises. How ironic that the only one who did was a sixteen year old child who is known to be the most carefree of us all. Yet we ignored he pleas, and for that we paid, paid dearly with our own blood." To that, Zack could not find the words that could possible comfort such a failure.

"He led us into the Black Castle Kazas, where we were to eliminate any threatening factions as well as Hytas. Of course, that's where he laid as he preyed on us one at a time. He wiped most of us out immediately, the whole twelve man group that was sent in, half of them his own loyal sergeants, and they were all slain without remorse. However, two of us were not as lucky to get a quick death. Dart and I were carried back for… experimentations."

Rose raised an eyebrow. This was where the story got truly interesting, or horrifying, depending on how you looked at it.

"As I'm sure you're well aware, Sandora has employed an army of hybrid soldiers. Physical specimens that were mass produced, intended to have the best of both worlds. While they proved formidable, they were much like machines on the inside, empty, and could only follow basic orders. But behind the scenes, more sophisticated experiments have been conducted. The aim was to take the normal hybrid soldiers, prototypes they were referred to, or genome soldiers, and give them a living soul." Both Zack and Lucile gasped.

"I… was the first serious candidate for that process." Now all three of them were stunned into a silence that none of them could break.

"His aim is to in the end create genome soldiers with souls, so they can think, act and apply basic intelligence to a given situation. To do this, he harvested the souls from Mayfil."

"But won't he run the risk of mutiny?" Rose asked in a shaken voice.

"He has taken that into consideration, and has employed special precautions to make sure that doesn't happen." She paused for a moment. "In any event, the result is what you see before you now."

"...So he has control over the souls within Mayfil?" Rose asked hesitantly. This was blowing way out of proportion, and the more she heard, the less she liked her chances of actually succeeding. She never liked them previously, but now, even this revelation was beginning to dint her unbreakable hope.

"Yes, although I know not how. I remember being experimented on in various ways prior the soul exchange. I was then taken into laboratories filled with bodies that were piled in large... tanks, there were hundreds of them. I don't recall much else; I was pretty drugged up at the time. The next thing I know a needle goes into me, although that was hardly new, and I drifted off to sleep, when next I would wake, I was in this body."

That explained why she looked different, although that small victory was bittersweet.

"Me and the others you see here, plus six more were able to escape during a system malfunction. Ever since we've kept our identities concealed as not get noticed. We are hunted, both for our sample data and for the threat we could pose, especially if we ran into you."

"I see" was the only reply Rose could muster. It seemed shallow and almost callous, but nothing more she could think to say could possible sound valid or right in light of recent, not to mention tragic events."

"I'm so sorry for you" Lucile said lowly, bowing her head. Shana shook her head.

"I see it as a second chance, and if not for Wen deciding to experiment on me, as both painful and humiliating as it was, I wouldn't be here now." Zack also offered his regrets, and promised himself that this, as well as the other ever growing offences that appeared on his mental list would be avenged in a bath of his blood. He wanted nothing more then to tear that son of a bitch from limb to limb.

"Well, that now gives us our next plan of action. We'll have to head to Mayfil, to try and disrupt the cycle of souls that are being unjustly bound." Her eyes blazed, a look which Zack had seen before, a look of absolute determination. Wen was in more trouble then he realized, and as much as Zack could envision his own dish of retribution, he knew Rose's would be a thousand times worse.

"Our other comrades were slaughtered on the spot, save for Dart. He met a much more… perverse twist of fate." Tears began to roll down her softening eyes.

"This, above all is perhaps the most important piece of information I have to share with you. Wen is but a puppet, a pawn for a greater evil." She paused, as if for dramatic effect, but in reality she had trouble catching her breath, had trouble forming the words that needed to be said as if saying them would shatter all doubts that this was some crazy nightmare.

"Dart… my Dart; the Dart I love and cherish… has become the new host for Melbu Frahma."

Rose had never been one to faint from surprises, scares or supernatural events. Yet if she ever would have, she thought that revelation would have done it. All of the sudden she felt dizzy, her mind reeling. Zack seemed to have sensed that too, and he placed a tender hand on hers which was placed behind her for support, away from the sight of Lucile or Shana.

"He is… still alive?" Rose chocked out, now it was her feeling like she was in a nightmare. Her arch rival which has haunted her for thousands of years, has shattered her life, destroyed her love and comrades, made her into the relentless being she was today… was still alive? _Impossible! _

"Yes... I wouldn't have believed it either… but it was he who inserted the needle into my neck that ended my life… with a look of absolute glee and wickedness that could not possibly be Dart. He had told me before the experiment that he was inside him, but I... refused to believe it. I thought it another tactic to try and mentally destroy me. But at that moment, the moment that needle went into me, I saw his eyes. No... I saw into his soul. It was then I knew that it wasn't Dart. I knew then that the Dart, the real Dark I knew and loved… was dead. He died along with us, although not physically, certainly in every other sense. I have never seen such evilness... such cruelness… I felt more vileness in those few seconds then I did with Wen in the weeks he had tutored and experimented on me. It made Wen's maliciousness seem trivial. Be careful Rose, if he thinks you're not aware he will use Dart's shell to try and lure you in."

She was about to continue, but she stopped when she noticed Rose's head face down looking at the ground, her hair covering her facial expression. Her eyes were burning with anger, fear and anxiety, her head spinning like that of a man who has had one (or rather a dozen) to many pints of ale. Zack squeezed harder on Rose's hand, as if to try and bring her back to reality, but she was in another world, another universe right now. How could he be alive? After all this, all the sacrifices that she had made eleven thousand years ago, all the people that had died, all the wars that had been waged, and still he exists, almost stronger then ever? She felt on the verge of passing out now, her mind not able to compute the information that was sending her mind into a downward spiral. He body began to shutter, and what left her mouth next was something Zack never expected he would ever hear. Something that surprised him a hundredfold more times then when she uttered those passing yet encouraging remarks to Lucile about her purity. Not only was it a hundred times more surprising, it was a hundred times more frightening. What she said next, was in a tone of complete and utter defeat and resignation.

"We cannot win."

A dreadful Silence ensured.

* * *

**Note: **A small chapter I know, and it wasn't what I had initially planned, but the next set of events I feel needs to be its own chapter. On the bright side, we get an early update . Also, special thanks goes out to Kungfaux07, who kindly pointed out in the previous chapter that Zeig's hair was blonde, not black ; (I felt like a dope). Anyway, enough ramblings (one would think if I put time into my NEXT chapter rather then put notes at the end of EACH chapter I'd be nearly finished this story eh?).


	40. Chapter 40

**Chapter 40**

Zack was the one to break the silence, and he looked at Rose uneasily.

"What do you mean we can't win?" he said in a tone of utter disbelief. He had to ask again to make sure he heard correctly. Rose cast her eyes downward, unable to look at the piercing gazes of her companions.

"Rose…" Lucile began softly and sympathetically. Rose stood up abruptly, almost loosing balance as she shot to her feet. "None of you understand…" she trailed off in a tone of terror. Her mind was reeling, trying to process the new information about Melbu Frahma's survival. Her face had turned even paler then it usually was.

"With all due respect, that isn't something a leader should saying" Lucile said sternly, although still not without an undertone of sympathy. Rose shook her head fervently; trying to find some kind of anchor that would steady her.

"I didn't ask to be a leader" she shot back, taking a couple of steps backwards.

"But you are Rose, and you know it." Shana said nothing, only watched on with equally growing horror. It went without saying, but if Rose were to withdraw from the battle, then all would be lost. She only hoped that her new found associates would be able to break the stupor Rose had now entered. She didn't blame her of course; Rose knew more then anyone the terrors of Melbu Frahma and the wrath of his oppressive convictions. But still, she couldn't have picked a worse time to crumble.

"I… I need some time alone "she confessed and hastily turned back towards the shrine of her life long friend. The others could only watch, fixated as she left, speechless.

"This looks like trouble" Shana said grimly. "Perhaps one of you two should try and confront her." Lucile and Zack exchanged glances.

"That's not my role" Lucile replied. She looked at Zack, and he sighed.

"She wanted to be alone… perhaps its best we leave her there to try and figure out her thoughts for herself. In the end, whether she continues or not is up to her." His face looked rather shrewd as he glanced off into the direction of their dispirited leader as she slowly faded out of view. Lucie agreed with his sentiment, surprised at his almost guru like response.

"For all of our sakes, I hope she chooses the right one" Shana murmured, and the silence once again befell them.

* * *

Rose had walked into the main chamber of the shrine, passing the half dome like tunnel entrance and back into the room that split into the many dead ends. One of her hands was plastered over her half face as she walked, her mind in a fierce battle on how she should take this revelation, and more importantly, what she should do about it. She never felt fear; she was never taught to and it was ever an emotional disadvantage to fear. She felt some degree of it towards Frahma she supposed, but that wasn't the heart of the matter, or even close. She was experiencing so many different emotions she couldn't pin it down to just one, or even a cluster if it came to that.

She spotted a small piece of broken debris, which conveniently acted as a hard surface to sit herself on, and she let out a deep sigh.

_What have I been doing? What am I doing? There's no way we can win this _she thought. All her life seemed to be one impossible battle after the next, one war after another.

_I can't keep doing this. _She looked up at the shimmering sun, and wanted nothing for to be free. Free of political wars, free or race wars, free of dragons, Winglies and gods… free of everything.

She quickly shrugged off such wistful thoughts. They would do her no good now, this is the situation she is now in and she has to deal with it. She knew she would continue, despite her trepidation and the feeling of absolute helplessness. Even though the flicker of strong hope and desire that always burned within her seemed all but extinguished, she would continue, as she always has and always will. But if her own spirit and determination had been defeated even before the battle has truly began, how can she possibly hope to win?

"Rose?" a worried voice asked. She turned around to see Shirley in front of her, her face full of concern. "Are you alright?"

Rose at that moment decided to be honest with her best friend as opposed to masking her feelings behind a veil of shadow as she so often did. She shook her head sourly. "No, I don't think I am."

Shirley, who was one of the few people who could read her friend almost perfectly, found no surprise in that she was upset, but rather more in the fact she actually admitted it. Shirley placed a soft hand on her weary friends shoulder, and Rose turned her head, facing her for the first time. Rose's hand shifted on the broken piece of what was once a pillar she had probed her self on absently. It was then that Shirley only truly began to realize by looking into her old comrade's eyes the emotional maelstrom she was currently weathering.

"I'm listening" Shirley coaxed tenderly. Rose internally blessed her friend's light heart, even during the darkest times her optimism burned like a brazier. Rose told her everything.

When Rose had finish explaining predicament she was now in, which seemed to ignite feelings she thought she had put under control, Shirley moaned sorrowfully.

"This is a too big a burden for one person to carry" she said, her usual optimism now replaced by a mourning sadness. "And you've already had to bare more then thought possible."

"Yet, it is mine to carry, regardless" she replied. "It always has been mine."

"Then why not try and share it?"

Rose knew exactly who Shirley had in mind. She shook her head. "It is mine and mine alone." Shirley, who's hand had dropped off her friend shoulder before she told her story, place it gently back on in a gesture of support. Rose looked away dejectedly, hardly noticing the contact.

"I wish I could do more" her dead friend confessed regretfully.

"You've done more then enough Shirley, and have even persisted through death to continue to aid. Just being here now proves it." Shirley placed her other hand on her other friend's shoulder (despite appearing ethereal, she was bound physically as well, or at least when she wanted to) and pulled her into an embrace. Rose buried her head deep into Shirley's shoulder as she heard her friend mutter "I'll always be here for you."

The words, the moment, the contact, or perhaps all three combined, ushered a floodgate to long past emotions, feelings that have been pent up inside for many thousands of years. They began to build and build, until she found herself not only trying to combat surging emotions of what has just transpired, but feelings and sensation she has repressed since she first became a Dragoon Knight. The battle for control was short lived, and as a wave of emotion came crashing down on her like a tsunami, she did something she hadn't done in over ten thousand years. Something she thought she now longer knew how to do, or would ever again do. For one of the rare occasions in her long and struggling life, she cried.

* * *

In spite of himself, Zack did end up going after Rose, even though he himself earlier had said it was a decision Rose had to make. He really couldn't help it, and while he wasn't naive enough to think he could simply waltz, in and give a speech and break her out of her broken state of mind, she was his friend, and he felt inclined to offer what help he could, as little as it may turn out to be. It didn't take him long to stumble upon her within the main chamber, and he could see Shirley with her also. By this time, Rose had ceased her uncontrollable sobbing and broken the friendly embrace (thank the gods she would later think, she didn't know how she could deal with Zack stumbling upon her moment of great weakness, he already had witnessed several) but she was still on the large piece of stone, talking mildly.

"Ah, it looks like I must relinquish my role for another" Shirley suddenly announced softly. Rose, who hadn't noticed Zack's presence, followed her friend's gaze and looked on incredulously.

"I'll still be here if you need me Rose" she reminded one last time before disappearing, much the same way she had initially emerged. "Thank you" Rose muttered lowly, and when she heard Zack advance from behind her, she didn't turn to regard him.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, and then mentally slapped himself. What a stupid question, it was obvious she felt like crap, that much could be deciphered by looking at her. "Sorry, you don't need to answer that" he quickly amended sheepishly. She now half turned to him, one eye regarding him. Although the intense flood of emotions were drained thanks to the recent turn of events (she hated to admit she actually cried, even to herself), her still eyes betrayed traces of her inner turmoil she hoped she managed to get under control, at least externally.

"You must think I'm a fool" she suddenly stated, shifting her gaze. Apparently she wasn't all cried out after all, as she felt the urge to weep once again. She wouldn't let herself of course, she had done enough for today, and it wouldn't be proper if she started to in front of him. But even so, it looked as if she still hadn't reestablished her firm defenses, and while it disgruntled her a little to be yet again in another vulnerable state in front of the man who had already witnessed too many, she thought it would be okay, at least for the time being. She had come to trust him enough to know he wouldn't be malicious enough to take advantage.

"No I don't" he replied solemnly. "You acted as any other human being would, perhaps even better. Better then I would have, in any event." He let out a nervous chuckle.

"I'm not supposed to be human. I'm a Dragoon Knight, a monster, not a human." Zack sighed inwardly, but thought that her even talking to him was at least some progress made.

"Stop it" he said, a little more sharply then intended. "Or as you would say, 'stop filling my head with nonsense.'" He tried desperate to imitate her voice, which yielded comic results, and after a few moments of silence she couldn't help but break into a grin. It was a little wan, a little worn, but it had humor written all over it."

Zack caught glimpse of it before she turned away from his view, and he too smiled.

"What have you done to me?" she asked, although that in itself held its own humor and lacked any real malevolence, much to her dismay.

"Converted you over to the land of witticism" he replied happily. "An island where everyone smiles and laughs, rather then glowers and scowls" he continued. "I'm surprised you don't have any wrinkles from frowning so much."

She didn't give any real response, was too put out to give her usual whip crack like retort, but it had momentarily taken her mind off the problems that relentlessly bit at her. When her mind returned to them, mostly due to the silence, although this one was not an unpleasant one, things appeared a little… brighter.

"Anyway, we'd like you to come back, if you're ready to" he began. "I don't believe for one moment you're going to withdraw or run away. You're just… mentally preparing."

"That's… one way to look at it, albeit a very warped one" she said dryly. Zack snickered.

"So are you ready, commander?" he asked, mock saluting. She rolled her eyes at him, but he didn't seem to pay any heed.

"I guess it can be helped" she sighed, defeated. "You guys would be naked without me anyhow."

"That a girl" he beamed, extending his arm to help her off the broken mini pedestal. She took it without thinking, and he pulled her towards him, landing with her usual cats like grace.

"That's the Rosie I know and—"he cut himself off mid sentence, bewildered at what he was going to say. That phase itself may not have meant anything more then encouragement, especially since the word love, which was the next word to escape his lips and would have had he not quickly caught up with what his mouth was verbalizing, was used loosely. Yet it made him self conscious none the less.

"And admire" he finished quickly. That sounded just as bad, but it was all he could think of, and if he let the brief silence elapse into a large one well… He again mentally slapped himself, thinking it would have been a whole lot easier if he just said the phase properly, now looking back in retrospect, neglecting the words made it all the more suspicious.

"What have I told you about calling me that?" she scolded, apparently unfazed by what came after it. He didn't know if she purposely aimed her attention to that because she knew what the rest could possibly imply, or was really just oblivious. Again, he found himself believe the former, as Rose was much to sharp to let obvious hints like the one he had so stupidly dropped pass by her without noticing it.

None the less Zack regained his compare and played along, giving her another mock salute. "Yes ma'am" he chirped, and the two of them walked back towards the camp, in a considerably brighter mood then either of them had left in.

* * *

"They have returned" Shana said, still sitting in the same position around the burning camp fire. Lucile had her back facing the entrance to the sanctum. She pivoted her body, facing the two objects that slowly came into view, identifying them immediately.

"Let's hope for the better" Lucile murmured.

"Her coming back at all is a positive sign if you ask me" Shana replied, smiling a little.

Zack, for one of the rare occasions was in the lead, Rose following in close tow, almost seemingly hiding behind his shadow. "S'up?" Zack greeted, hand disappearing behind his neck. Rose sighed, and prepared for the apology she though she ought to make. Before she could step in front and verbalize it however, Lucile piped in.

"Well, Shana also confirms Frahma's desire for the set of the Dragoon Spirits." She continued on as if nothing had ever happened, and while Rose remained as stoic as ever, her eyes hinted many thanks. Lucile smiled at her, almost as if to say 'it's okay.'

"And he really has the means to create one united source of energy from the seven different objects?" Zack inquired. Shana nodded somberly.

"He has a scientific background, and his science doesn't stop at cloning unfortunately." Shana seemed to have also caught on to the 'forget it ever happened' tactic they employed in regards to Rose's earlier outburst. "If he can fuse them… he will have power beyond anything we could ever imagine. At least, that's what one would surmise, after witnessing the power of them individually." She paused momentarily, cocking her head a little. "Of course, there's always a chance it will fail or backfire, which that in itself could create catastrophic events, but I think its best we don't take chances."

"Indeed" Rose replied, still a little more shyly then usual. "In any even, it looks like we have our next trip planned."

"You're going to Mayfil?" Shana asked. Rose nodded.

"Disrupting his harvest of souls would ideally be the first approach at cutting down their armies, or at least hinder its growth."

"You're in for one hell of a trip."

"Question!" Zack interrupted, raising his hand as if in a classroom. "Where, or what is this... err... Mayfil place you guys are talking bout? Don't leave us new comers out of the loop."

Shana looked at Rose; giving her one of those 'you explain it' looks. Rose sighed in typical fashion, which earned a small giggle from Shana.

"The Death City Mayfil is one of the three remaining pure Wingly cities left in the world. The final bastion between this world and the next, souls of the dead are drawn there, to which then they are sentenced." Rose explained this as if explaining that apples dropped off tree, and Zack both Lucile were gawking with their jaws nearly hitting the floor.

"Such a place exists?" Zack asked in amazement. Rose nodded.

"I was surprised it still existed as well. I thought it was destroyed during the Dragon Campaign." Zack shook his head.

"That's not what I meant. I meant such a place existed in the first place?" Rose gave him a queer look.

"You didn't know? It's common Wingly lore, really."

"Uhh, I don't remember ever going to the library in Fletz and finding an isle marked 'common Wingly lore, all you need to know about the afterlife." Shana had to stifle a wave laughter as Rose groaned.

"Anyway" she continued. "Even though Mayfil had not been destroyed as I had first thought, the process of cycling souls had been, which resulted in old souls lingering within the city itself. This is what Wen and Melbu are probably taking advantage of. Getting there however will be a problem, since we have to go through the other two Wingly cities Aglis and Zenebatos, and on my last visit, due to the conflicting magic of the Dragoons and the destroyed Signet Sphere, it ended up falling apart."

To the mention of Zenebatos, Shana finally did erupt in a gale of laughter.

"Whatever you do, don't cut the line in Zenebatos" she spoke between her chortles. Zack and Lucile looked at her like she had suddenly gone mad, and Rose just raised a mild eyebrow.

"Don't you remember Rose, when Dart cut the line to get the legislation changed?" Rose titled her head for a moment, and she cracked a narrow smirk of her own. Her other two companions only looked on with growing confusion.

"Zenebatos is a city which is run by Cyborgs that adhere to a strict protocol. Those who break such laws are teleported to the near by prison. You have to go to the legislation center if you want any rules change or to become exempt to a particular law. There is queue to which you have to wait in line, and since Dart was in somewhat of a rush, he decided to skip the line since they were only machines in it anyhow. The result was… disastrous" Rose breathed. Zack and Lucile still didn't understand, but Shana giggles once again.

"In any case, if we want access to Zenebatos or Mayfil, we'll have to consult the power of the Winglies."

"And how can we do that?" Zack questioned.

"Either the help from Charlie and the others in Ulara, or the denizens in the Wingly Forest." She paused for a moment, frowning. "Last I heard the Wingly Forest had allied itself with Wen, so that really only leaves our second trip to Ulara."

"But that's in another continent. We have means of sea travel, and Sandora have a monopoly on all the ports in this region" Zack added unhappily. Rose sighed in frustration.

"I may be able to help you with that" a voice echoed from behind them. Rose swung her head around to see that Shirley had yet again intervened. "A ship broke a shore a while ago. It stuck near the mangroves down the gully a bit" she elaborated. Rose raised an eyebrow.

"A ship? What kind of ship?"

Shirley titled her head thoughtfully. "It was an old ship, looked like it was falling apart. Drake found it while you were off fighting Melbu Frahma some time ago. I'm not sure if it's operational but, I guess it's worth a try."

Rose shrugged almost offhandedly. "I don't see much other choice."

"Well when you're finished here I'll be happy to guide you. It's a fair way off this place and into the groves, at the end of the stream that breaks into the Great Sea" she said. Rose nodded, and looked at Shana.

"What will you be doing?"

"We'll assist in other ways" she began with a smirk. "We have other underground connections, so while you find a way to break off their connection to Mayfil, we'll attack their occupied towns, Bale and Fletz."

"Excellent" she replied satisfied. "If we succeed, then all that will be left is the Black Castle."

"You just make sure you keep up your end, and we'll find a way to do ours." She gave them a wink for good measure, before she pulled back on the face mask that once again shrouded her identity.

"Don't worry, we'll get it done" Rose reassured. Shana stood up, seemingly to turn towards the rest of her comrades who had been waiting patiently.

"Oh, I nearly forgot" she said, swinging around to face her friend. "What's with the black rose you got there?" Rose appeared taken aback by the question, and her hand subconsciously brushed over it. She had almost forgotten all about it. "Found it" she replied, shrugging dismissively.

"It looks nice… in a dark sort of way" she commented sincerely. She turned back to her own companions. "Be ready to move" she ordered. They were all up and seemingly ready to be off moments later.

"Well, until we meet again… assuming we do" she said almost apprehensively.

"Just don't get yourself killed and we will" Rose returned without humor. Shana chuckled at her bluntness.

"I'll try not to." She turned to face Zack and Lucile. "It was nice to meet you both. Please take care of each other." Lucile nodded and Zack gave her a grinning thumbs up.

"I _always_ look after us" Zack claimed proudly. Rose looked at him narrowly.

"If by look after you mean annoy, then you'd be correct" Rose replied matter-of-factly. Zack looked at her stricken, then joined in with Lucile and Shana who giggled for a final time.

"Well, farewell" Shana said before her and the rest of her followers disappeared into the shadows of the forest.

"Hey, I don't always annoy you, do I?" Zack questioned after they had left. She looked at him considerately, delaying her response.

"No" she sighed. "You don't. I'd say only ninety five percent of the time. When you're sleeping, you're quite pleasurable to be around… when you're not sleep talking that is" she answered, although both of them could pick up the undertone of good nature buried within the reproachful remark.

"Cruel as always" was his only response. Rose ignored it and made her way towards Shirley who had also been waiting patiently, looking on with graceful enthusiasm.

"Are we all set?" she asked. Rose consented, and Shirley began to lead them to the ship. As promised, they got on to the second level of the building before they branched off into the depths of the green overgrowth, which once inside was almost black. They weaved their way through the rather muddy soil, must to the dismay of both Zack and Lucile. Any vines or small enough trees that hindered them Rose simply cut, and other they had to move around. They even bumped into several fallen structural remains of the once glorious tower.

Mercifully, the journey was a lot shorter then that of the marsh, and when the large ship came into view (it was still not entirely visible due to the trees obstruction) they were nearly at the end of the peninsula, which marked the end of the channel and the start of the vast open sea that separated Serdio and Tiberoa known as the Great Sea. Once they reached the end of the isle of trees and shrubs, they landed on a small sandy bank at just under the muddy landscape, free of trees and mangroves before it eroded out into the blue salty sea. Now, free to gaze upon the ship unhindered, Rose froze, eyes wide with shock.

"In can't be" she muttered as she stared at ship Shirley was talking about, a long ebon ship that towered over them, bobbing ominously in the water. The ship, which flaws and tattered breaks were visible even to them, the large mast which had a large crack all the way up it as the ripped and torn sheets white sheets glided with the eddies that began to pick up. Holes and fractures could be seen even on the side of the boat, and could only imagine the condition of the interior of the large ship. It was amazing it was even floating. Although as to why, and what was inside the ship Rose knew all too well.

A heavy overcast of grey clouds began to close in, the rumbling of distant thunder threatening to spike the earth with vicious lightening.

"Looks like it's going to storm" Lucile said, looking off into the distance where the dark clouds began to roll.

"Not to mention rain" Zack added. But Rose still hadn't taken her eyes off the menacing ship before them.

"I can't believe it's still here" Rose mused. Zack and Lucile looked at her in puzzlement.

"What do you mean?" Lucile questioned. Rose nodded towards the ship.

"It's the Ghost Ship."

* * *

**Notes: **Sorry for the long update, just as I was nearing the completion of this chapter my system decided to malfunction. Anyway, a while later it finally gets fixed, but I failed to back up the chapter, so hence I had to start over (all in all it set me back for more then a week). Oh well, I think I wrote this chapter better the second time anyway, so enjoy.


	41. Chapter 41

**Chapter 41**

"The Ghost Ship?" Zack asked a little skeptically. "You mean like haunted?"

Rose nodded. "At least it was last time I saw this wreck..." she paused, and could almost feel the moans of anguish and pain that seemed to exuberate from the ghastly vessel. "No, I'm sure it still is."

"Haunted with what?" Lucile asked, as the thunder began to sound closer.

"Victims of an old incident" Rose replied, frowning at the question that would follow.

"What incident?" Zack asked.

_And there it is _Rose thought, as she turned her back, facing back towards the shrine. "Over Seventeen years ago, it was rumored that this ship, which was once a prized vessel of the Mille Seseau navy, housed Princess Louvia, second daughter to the late King and Queen Eden, and only sister of the now Queen Theresa." She took a deep breath, and then exhaled. "I ended up storming the ship, killing everyone… including the then infant Louvia."

Both of them winced but said nothing. Zack of course learned about the Black Monster the hard way, which still upon hearing niggled at the resentment he still held. Lucile learned about her brutal past through Shirley, who explained the process of the moon child which birthed every one hundred and eight years and would be the eventual downfall of all man kind. Lucile understood the motives and the basis for the transformation Rose underwent, which consequently caused her to forfeit her womanhood, innocence and a good portion of her humanity, but she herself didn't think she could bring herself to be the Black Monster if she was in Rose's shoes. But despite all the suffering and torment she brought to others, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of sympathy. No one deserved to be put in a position where they had to chose, let alone carry out such requests, and while she didn't openly show it, she had an idea Rose felt guilt for each and every life she claimed.

"The last I saw of this ship was when it was sinking to the bottom of the ocean" Rose continued. "I don't know how it got afloat, let alone how it got here, but in any event it seems we have little choice board it and find out these mysteries for ourselves."

Zack looked at the ship, then at Rose. "Are you sure?" he asked lightly.

"Yes" she replied, although he could sense some hesitation.

"I wonder if it even works…" he murmured, almost in passing.

Rose shrugged. "Maybe. Only one way to find out."

Light trickles of rain began to sprinkle, rolling lightly off their exposed skin and clothes. Rose looked up as the rain began fall a little harder, her hair and face sticking to her face like glue. She turned to Shirley, who still stood back as patiently as ever.

"You should head back" Rose suggested lightly. Her friend smiled, nodding slightly.

"I think this will be where our reunion ends" she spoke, her smile disappearing. Rose agreed and thanked her loyal friend once again.

"You all take care of each other, for it is in these trying times that you rely on your friends and companions the most." The three approved with a nod, and Shirley waved, gliding back a few inches. "Farewell." With one last smile, although this one bore a touch of sorrowful regret which became more then a touch as she vanished for the last time, she returned to her place of dwelling, not in the end able to verbalize the fierce dread that ate away at her heart, telling her that one way or the other this would be their final meeting.

Rose's attention switched back to the boat that still bobbed in the middle of the narrow stream squished in between the two land masses. It almost appeared to beckon them, as if daring them to jump aboard.

"Well, at least we don't have to worry about getting wet" Zack remarked as the rain lashed at them harder still. "But this storm came from absolutely nowhere." Another echo of thunder sundered and Lucile nearly jumped. It was upon them now, and as the squall approached, so did strong gales of wind that felt like they would sweep them into the river.

"Let's be quick about it" Rose commanded, and began to walk towards the rocking ship, her boots sinking into the soft sand as they submerged. Zack and Lucile followed close in tow, each step taken with added caution, as if they may step on something dangerous.

Luckily the water only came as high as Rose's thigh, or to Zack's knee. Weaving through the water towards the ship still proved to be a challenge, the added air currents doing them no favours.

"How do we get up?" Lucile asked as they stood before its massive frame, and when Zack placed a vigilant hand on the wooden body, for a frightful moment he thought it would give way, as light as the pressure was. Lucile wrapped her arms around her chest, trying to generate as much body heat as possible, although it in the end proved futile against the whipping rain and eddies that felt like a blizzard. Rose didn't seem to feel it at all, her eyes focused, scanning the tops of the bow in hopes for a way onto the deck.

Zack felt the chilling whether as well, and he let out a small moan as his body shuddered.

"You're not human. How can you not feel the cold?" Zack asked in amazement. She didn't answer, her eyes still searching for an entry.

"It wasn't this cold when we were on the bank, even with this storm. This chilliness is… unnatural" the White Silver Dragoon Knight added.

"You're quite right. It's the chill of the forsaken, the undead that are bound to this ship" Rose said. "This is the feel of death." She explained it offhandedly, her mind still intent on finding some way up. In the end, her efforts were rewarded, although in the most ominous of ways. A white rope attached ladder sprung fourth, falling to the bottom of the ship seemingly from nowhere. Small wooden planks that acted as steps were stuck between the two ropes as it dangled dangerously.

"I don't like this" Zack murmured uneasily. "It's almost like we're expected." Rose looked at the ladder, then to the top of the ship were it seemingly appeared from, and then to Zack.

"I think we are expected." She took a deep breath. "Make sure you ready yourselves. If the inhabits are as hostile as they were on my last visit then… it'll be rather problematic." They both looked at her evenly. "They're already dead so… killing them is not possible, so all our weapons, and even our dragoon forms will be useless."

"But they cannot attack us… right?" Zack asked nervously, knowing what the answer would be.

"I hope not..." was her reply, although he could detect the doubt in the answer, and thought she knew full well they could. Meanwhile the storm grew more unstable, threatening sweep them all to a watery grave.

"In any event, we don't really have a choice. If we don't, we'll be waterlogged by this storm, and likely pulled out into the Great Sea where we will either drown or become food by the roaming aquatic populace."

"Great conundrum we're in" Zack said dryly, and took it upon himself to be the first to climb the somewhat unstable ladder.

"Grab on to the person in front of you so we don't fall" Rose instructed as she followed after Zack, wrapping one hand around the back of his shirt. Lucile followed last, her free hand on Rose's top as well. The wind picked up, and the ladder flung to and fro, threatening to throw them off, and may very well have if not for the added stability of the chain like formation the three of them climbed in, sharing each others steadiness. With a good amount of effort, they were finally able to haul themselves to the deck, crashing with a loud thump.

"By the gods, that was viscous" Zack complained in between deep breaths, water dripping off him like a tap.

"We'll have a lot more to worry about if you don't liven up" Rose snapped almost curtly as she scanned the area for any unknown enemies. "Keep on guard, and stay together."

A heavy mist blanketed the ship; feeling like death itself was caressing them. It nipped at the bones and flesh in your eyes, tingled the back of your nose felt like hundreds of small worms were crawling up your skin.

"This place is unholy" Lucile spoke lowly as they glanced around their foreign surroundings. It was certainly no better on the deck then it appeared on the side, the front of the ship was broken and battered with large sections of wood missing, while the room just behind it, distinguishable as the navigation room by the large broken panel and steering wheel, which was seeable through the large holes on the side and caved in roof. To the right of them was a staircase that led to the lower area of the vessel, the large mast stemming rocket slightly, threatening to fall. Behind that was a broken door that led into the captain's quarter. Beyond that was the rear of the ship, which much like the front sustained much damage, visible by the pieces of deadwood scattered along the rickety floor, unstable floor that if one wasn't careful enough was apt to fall through the various pot holes and missing planks.

"did… you do all this Rose?' Lucile asked hesitantly.

"… Yes." Lucile recoiled, looking around at the damage that appeared inhuman. _What power she possesses_ she thought with a mixture of awe and terror.

Rose looked down at her open hands, the memories of that eventful night flooding her mind, reminding her of how she left the ship in a dark and sinister blaze, the echoes of her burning victims filling her ears. She would always remember those screams and cries of agony, as well as every time she closed her eyes, she could see the horrifying images that went with them.

The rain didn't taper off either despite the fact the storm was seemingly passing them, strong raindrops still crashed upon them as the breeze corralled their numb bodies.

"We're not alone, are we?" Zack asked knowingly, the usual humor and upbeat characteristics absent from his tone. What replaced it was one of fright and almost emptiness.

As if to answer his question, the vessel began to rock slowly until it broke away from the buoyant position it was in and slowly began to make its way to the Great Sea in front of them. Lucile could only shriek in horror as the ship began to slowly pick up speed, drifting away form the shore they had entered from.

"Does that answer your question?" Rose replied calmly.

"What do we do now?" he asked frantically, glancing around.

"We should seek cover from this storm" Rose said, looking towards the captain's cabin behind them.

"What? We don't even know what's on this ship, we can't just wonder around, god knows what will happen" Zack protested hotly, his voice partially blocked from the strong winds.

"You got a better idea?"

Zack moaned in exasperation, and not finding a viable alternative quickly entering his mind, he agreed reluctantly.

"We just… need to be careful. I have a bad feeling about this ship, and she sooner we can find a way off the better."

"That makes two of us" Rose replied absently.

"Three of us" Lucile added before sneezing. "But let's just find some cover, can we?"

The trio slowly made their way down the near by stairs that led to the lower portion of the ship. Under the ship was a narrow tattered hallway, with a large door in the middle of the left side, and an open area that appeared to be the captain's cabin at the end of the hall. As with the rest of the ship, buts of broken debris, wood and other materials were scattered on the wooden floor. Rose led, signaling them to follow her into the captain's cabin, where the least amount of rain escaped the broken roofs. The captain's room itself was no exception to the wreckage which befell the once beautiful boat in ages past, but among broken bookshelves, barrels. Draws, beds and walls, a picture was stuck aloft the southern wall. A picture of what could only be assumed as the captain rested in immaculate condition, completely unscathed by the damage surrounding it.

The roof still had its own holes and tears, but only small amounts of water seeped in, and managed to ward off most of the chilling winds.

"We'll rest here" Rose instructed and the ship jerked sharply, nearly throwing the three invaders onto the rocking floor beneath them.

"It may be better if we find somewhere and sit down so we don't tumble" Lucile voiced quietly, her hands wrapping around herself. Before she could get a response, she moved slowly towards the side of the cabin, near a large, unbroken pillar. She pressed her back against it and slowly slid downwards until she was in a sitting position, brining her knees up to her chest for added warmth. "It's so cold…"

Zack and Rose did the same, Zack ending up in the middle of his tow companions, and even Rose was now showing outward indications of coldness, possibly hyperthermia.

"We'll freeze to death at this rate" Lucile said weakly, her shoulder slumping and her head rolling to the side. The mist only intensified, and Rose could sense the unnatural intervention of what was likely the ship's inhabitants.

"Whatever you do, don't fall asleep" Rose warned, but as she turned her head to check on her friends, Lucile had already nodded off to the world of slumber, her eyes closed as she breathed lightly with regular intervals, her arms still wrapper around the knees she brought up to her upper body . If not for the circumstances, one could almost call it natural or peaceful.

Zack meanwhile did all he could to keep himself warm and awake. He rubbed his hands up and down his arms and legs, although the small friction he was able to create only lasted a second before it was gone. In the back of his consciousness, seemingly growing with each passing moment was the constant yet terrifyingly persuasive beckon of sleep, which threatened to consume him in the way it had Lucile.

"Hey, maybe we should try and huddle together to keep warm" Zack suggested as a cloud of vapor appeared with the clash of his warm air meeting that of the cold. Rose agreed, and Zack shuffled towards Lucile, and Rose did the same towards him. The effort required for such a simple task was surprising large, and Zack didn't think he could even find the energy to stand anymore. If there were intruders, which there evidently now were, the three of them were in great trouble, almost defenselessly so.

The three of them were now in direct contact with each other, and much to Rose's displeasure her body became hyperaware, even in the numbing cold. Their shoulders and arms were contacting, but even more so was her left exposed thigh touching his knee and leg, and despite how cold it was, it was startlingly warm at the same time.

A long silence passed, And Rose even began to feel her own fortitude begin to decline. She was now visibly shivering, they all were, and she sighed and rolled her head backwards, resting on the hard surface behind them.

"Sorry for dragging you guys into this" she began. She didn't really know where she was going with this, it seemed even thinking the most basic fundamentals was too energy exerting, but she knew she had to do something to keep awake or at least half active. "This is my problem, a problem I made for myself years ago. This shouldn't concern you."

Zack, he had until then rested his hands on his kneed and arms, looked up with mild interest.

"Don't worry about it. That's what friends are for, right? To share each other's burdens."

"It'll be no good if it kills us" she countered dryly. She twisted her heard around to see if they were still unobserved, and to the extent she could tell they were. The vessel rocked again, sending violent shockwaves throughout the cabin.

"I don't think we'll die from this." Zack said it in a kind of distant tone, like he was in another place or world. Perhaps he was for all she knew. "No, this is simply meant to weaken us, what is to kill us is still to come I think."

Rose found herself agreeing with him, a rarity which became more common as time went by.

"Still… this is a fate that should be mine and mine alone. It wasn't you that… that killed all those people." She broke off, her tone betraying guilt and apprehension.

"I've killed more people then I can count if I was given a lifetime to count. I have the blood of the innocent that will forever tarnish my being. It… it was hard at first, but after a while I just… thought it nothing more then a job. Death, destruction, decay… it was nothing more then a job." Now it was Rose who felt like she was under the effect of some dug or hallucinogen. She didn't like showing outward weakness or remorse for what she had done or describe how she felt, but in the face of death, which they seemingly were, she may as well let go of the small things she could. After all, she knew she had a special kind of hell awaiting her after she finally died for all the atrocities she had committed in the past lifetimes.

"You were only doing what you thought was right at the time. Although I admit I wouldn't have done the same… it seems you have kept the world going by your actions." Zack stopped briefly, as if to collect his thoughts. "It's all in the past anyway... we accept you Rose, the good and bad, the strong and weak. You don't have to worry about it anymore. You're no longer that person.

Oh how she desperately wanted to believe that, how she wanted to just throw it away in the past and believe what Zack had said. It did bring little closure to her (although very little), but she knew that upon hearing the last statement, that she still was that person. The Black Monster always has and will be apart of her, no matter how much she may wish otherwise. Perhaps the most frightening thing is that she knew, deep down in her dark recesses, that a part of her was waiting to unleash that monster again, and if given the chance to become that monster once more… she may be left powerless to do otherwise.

"How… can you just accept it, just accept who I am and what I've done so easily?" Exasperation filled her, and if she could have yelled she would have. "I've been the cause of so much suffering, so much death, even to you personally. How are you able to just… to just… accept that fact?" She looked at him weary eyed, full of anticipation. The fog was getting to her as well he knew, it was like… being on some kind of drug that made you feel incredibly light, like when you hit your head and it takes a few vital moments to register through the shock. He met her gaze right back, and he began to smile, a faint smile, but a smile none the less.

"I think you know why" he answered, and she recoiled as if she had been struck, diverting her eyes immediately. She was left speechless, and she was frantically trying to piece enough things together in her mind to forge a response. In the end though, outside interferences would beat them all, and as the ship rumbled once more, five figures manifested in the small cabin.

Four solider looking figures wearing gold rusted armor and a matching helm that covered their seemingly non existent faces emerged, each holding an ethereal sword. In the middle of the soldiers, which Zack observed much like Shirley were legless, was captain sitting in an armchair, contorted face eyeing them closely, and while he wore a blue and white vest and hat, it too was in tatters, no doubt form the attack Rose lead many years ago.

"You're a bit late to the party" Zack commented amused. Rose shot him a death stare, which told him to shut the hell up.

"This one is still awake… quite astounding" the captain began. "I expected the Black Monster to resist our drowsy mist, but to think that a mere man did..." he waved his hand in the direction of Zack dismissively. "Just sit there, it'll all be over soon." He turned his attention to Rose, and his disfigure face turned to that of hatred and disgust.

"And so you have returned "he spat. "This time, we will make to end your pathetic existence." Rose tried to will her body up, but she only got as far as arching her back and moving herself only a few inches off the floor before crashing back down against the hard wood behind and below her.

The captain smiled wickedly. "Even someone as powerful as you will not escape. Prepare for your execution, foul beast, and may you forever rot in hell." The captain looked at the five soldiers and nodded, and they began to approach Rose threateningly, weapons drawn. She gave one last final effort to force her body up, to defend herself, and as he hand reached for her blade, she didn't have the strength to pull out. She slid back down with a grunt of resignation.

"This moment will mark the death of a tyrant, the redemption of these brave protections, and in the end… our freedom. You have kept us here long enough monster, and through your demise will mark our liberty. Now die."

As the four soldiers began towards Rose, Zack had somehow managed to will himself up and on his feet, steeping in front of the prone Rose, stretching his hands out on either side of himself, as if to act as some wall. The action had sapped most of what left of strength, and just standing there was like he had a ten ton weight on his shoulders. But he would stand, even if it killed him. He wasn't going to let Rose die.

The captain looked at him in surprise. "What are you doing? Get out of the way." The ghost soldiers had stopped, as if not sure on what course of action they should take. He shook his head tiredly. "Can't do that sorry. You're gonna have to go through me."

"Zack, get down!" Rose cried. This time she really did yell. "You'll be killed!"

"Can't do that Rosie… I'm not moving anywhere. And even if I wanted to…" he let out a nervous laughter. 'I don't think my body will let me."

The captain looked on in growing fury. "Why do you protect this wretch? After all she has done, every one hundred and eight years, how can you possibly hope to help her?"

"I know she's done a lot of bad things but... I for one am a believer of second chances. Maybe we should give her a chance to redeem her self."

"Impossible" the captain shot. "Move down or you'll be cut down!" Zack shook his head once more.

"Zack…" Rose murmured. For the third time she tried to rise above sitting level, and this time gained some measure of success. She managed to prop herself on one knee. "This is a punishment I have to take. Don't interfere."

Zack once again ignored her pleas, as noble or as self sacrificing as they sounded. All his own feelings aside, they needed Rose alive, she was no good to them dead.

"Fine!" the commander roared. "Kill them both!"

A white light beamed behind them, and when they all turned their gaze upon the unconscious Lucile, her eyes fluttered to life.

"…Lu..cile?" Zack breathed in awe, his eyes seemingly sticking to her like glue. Her body was engulfed in a white glow, like some kind of warding aura. Her eyes, which Rose made note of, although open, were empty. They were just white, no pupil, no eye colour, just white.

_Could this be the Dragon Spirit possessing her? _Rose thought with a kind of fixated wonder. She had seen it done before, in certain situations it is possible for a Dragoon Spirit to possess its own master, but she had only seen it done twice. Coincidently, on both occasions it was the White Silver Dragoon Spirit that had done so.

Lucile, or rather, the dragoon possessing Lucile stood up, now completely impervious to the draining mist around them. Still wearing the white pulsing glow like some sort of cloak, she brushed past Zack and the soldiers, stopping before the captain sitting in the makeshift seat.

The captain recoiled, his face wrought with shock. "You… what are you?" he choked. Lucile smiled faintly, before pressing a hand on the visage, slowly exhaling.

"I feel your sorrow, poor tortured soul" she announced softly, and while the front of her tone sounded like Lucile, there was something totally different underneath. Like a small echo of something different, someone else. Zack may not quite know the extent of t transformation that has transpired here like Rose did, but he did know one thing. It wasn't Lucile standing in front of them.

Lucile turned to the soldiers. "You have all become victim of a terrible event, unable to move forward or backward, tied to this world by the hatred harbored in your tainted hearts." Everyone in the room now was staring at her; she just seemed to demand the attention. Zack didn't think he could peel his eyes away even if he wanted to.

"However" she continued, her voice full of empathy, sorrow and compassion. "Is this really alright to linger like this?" She eyed the captain, her eyes mirroring the sympathy in her voice. "All of your friends and companions have moved on, have let go. Why do you not do the same?"

The captain now seemed to break free of the fascinating charm that had rendered him speechless. "Because the monster needs to pay! She needs to atone for the heinous crimes she has committed!"

Lucile shook her head slowly. "But, if you would execute her with the same cold blood she did, would that not put you on her level? Would that not make you no more then a monster yourselves, especially If you're willing to harm innocent bystanders?" She regarded Zack for a few moments before turning her attention back to the commander who has one again been stunned into a dumb silence.

Then the ghosts did something completely unexpected. The captain moved off his chair, and knelt to one knee, his head bowing down. Soon the four soldiers did the same.

"You must be some kind of goddess. You remind us so much of our precious Princess Louvia, young and innocent."

She waved them off. 'I am no such thing. Please, rise." The captain refused softly.

"In the presence of someone as pure as yourself, I would do nothing but bow." He paused momentarily, almost hesitant. Zack found it somewhat amusing that they regarded her as some kind of holy god or priestess. "I do have one question, holy one. Why do you side yourself with the Black Monster, the side of darkness when you are clearly one of the light?"

"I side myself not with the Back Monster, nor with you. I only side myself with that of light and justice, which transgresses all other mortal conflicts and battles." She smiled softly, a smile which in Zack's opinion could light up an entire party. It was radiated goodness, wholeness and innocence.

"You all deserve rest. You have loitered here long enough. You deserve to be freed, much like the others on this ship. I can grant you your eternal rest, but to do so you must forsake your pursuit in retribution." The captain looked up at her, still on his knees. He considered for a long moment, and then nodded.

"Yes, we would like to rest. It's been… too long." He turned to the still pone Rose. "Monster, I believe you will find your own punishment, in one way or another. And just remember… when you finally die, we'll be waiting." He turned to Lucile. "Please… send us."

She nodded, and with a swift raise of one hand, a light swallowed the five spirits, banishing them to their place of rest. Finally, after all these years, the old soldiers of Mille Seseau have all been allowed to move on.

The shroud cleared immediately, granting back some of Rose's and Zack's vitality. Lucile meanwhile collapse, the light surrounding her fading away like a fleeting dream.

Zack ran gingerly to her, catching her before she could topple to the floor below. She blinked, her white eyes slowly changing turning back to her usual clarity, before they closed again, and this time she would not open them again until days later.

"Is she okay?" Zack wondered as Rose approached. Rose looked her down, then sighed quietly.

"I think she'll be alright. Her body is just spent, and it'll probably take a few days before she recovers."

"Recovers from what? What happened to her back there?"

"I've only seen it a couple of times but… sometimes, if the right circumstance presents itself, the dragon spirit in the dragoon stone can posses its host. However, due to the immense power, it is very strenuous on the body, sometimes fatal."

"What? Fatal? How? We use their powers all the time, don't we?"

"It's different when one is possessed. The power we draw is very minimal, and the body knows the limit it can draw from the Dragoon Spirit to borrow. However, then the spirit itself forcibly enters our body, the power is tenfold perhaps even one hundredfold. Our bodies cannot handle that kind of pure energy, and too much will simply overwhelm the body, causing it to shut down."

"So… Will Lucile die?" Zack asked, horror evident in his voice. Rose shook her head.

"No, I don't think so. The exposure was only short, and on both occasions of previous possessions by the dragoon spirit ended up successful recoveries. She's just tired and needs to rest." Zack sighed, relieved.

"The power these spirits have is kinda scary" he admitted.

"There is still so much we humans do not know about the dragoons, and yet we use them without abandon. Even I only know a small portion of what there is to know, and I'm not even sure if there are any long term effects or dangers when relying on the Dragoon Spirits."

"You used them for over eleven thousand years didn't you?'

"Yes, but look what happened to me. The chocker prevented any physical diminishment, but mentally…" she didn't continue, only stared off.

"Anyway, the one thing I know is that on the most part, those who swore by the Dragoon Spirits, died by them."

Nothing more was said between the two, and finally the rain began to taper off as the three continued to drift aimlessly, nothing but the vast open blue sea surrounding them.

* * *

**Note: **Another longer update then was intended. Another complication arose, which unfortunately prevented the earlier submission I had planned. In any event, I apologize once more, and hope you enjoy the chapter .


	42. Chapter 42

**Chapter 42**

As Rose had rightly predicted, Lucile didn't end up regaining consciousness for more then three days, three days to which Zack's initial worry only continued to grow, despite Rose's constant reassurance.

"She won't die; the White Silver Dragoon Spirit is the most righteous and benevolent, even as a dragon. The spirit would be very conscious of the host's life force" Rose explained.

"Even if you say that" Zack countered. "Wouldn't her initial lack of energy because of the mist factor into it?"

Rose had shrugged dismissively. "If she was going to die, she'd be dead already." That wouldn't be the first or last conversation in regards to that matter from the time she lost consciousness until she woke up.

* * *

Lucile's awakening wasn't all too pleasant either. When her eyes were able to focus, she found herself rocking on a makeshift bed, which was really just broken pieces of wood what may have once been a bed, softened by various streaks of old worn cloth which her friends had been able to scour for her. It irritated her skin considerably, and her skin would itch relentlessly for the next few hours until she was able to properly clean herself.

_I'm alive. Did Rose and Zack die? Am I a prisoner? Did I get left behind?_ Lucile didn't find herself able to fully believe any of the half cohesive notions of her friend's fate that went through her head. She thought them alive, and most probably well. If they were dead or any ill outcome had become of them, she thought she would most definitely know. They were all linked now, linked by destiny, fate and even Soa if one wanted to believe it. She found she did.

She managed to sit up, although not without great effort. Her body still felt like it had been subject to endless physical labor and thought she could easily sleep the next few days or even weeks. It was then on closer inspection she became aware she was in the same room she had passed out in, although not raining it seems, judging by the absence of the repetitive thudding.

Taking a few moments to regroup, she briefly checked herself for any injuries she may have sustained. She found none, much to her relief and began to try and piece back together the events before she had descended into whiteness. Doing that only managed to provoke more questions, much to her exasperation.

"Well I won't get any answers sitting here" she murmured. Feeling a little more bold, she got to her feet, the rotting floorboards below letting out groans of protests in the form of small creaks.

"I'm surprised this ship can support itself" she muttered to herself, her head beginning to throb uncontrollably, nearly causing her to double over. _Is this what a hangover is supposed to feel like?_ Lucile wondered as her herself had never drank anymore then a glass of good whine. She groggily made her way into the long hallway which spilled out into the open deck. The ship nearly threw her off her precarious balances on several occasions during her journey to the deck, and once she managed to get to the open area where the sun nearly blinded her and water smashed up against the side of the boat nearly soaking her, the rocking only became more unstable.

"Sleeping beauty's up at last." Lucile turned her head toward the front of the ship to see Zack walk towards her, smiling happily. Great relief filled him at the sight of a conscious Lucile, and while their situation may not be all that great, they had at least that small miracle to thank.

"How long have I been out?" she asked, a hand firmly placed on her head as if it would ward off the unrelenting headache she was suffering.

"Around three days or so." Her eyes widened in surprise.

"Three days? That long? What happened?" She winced, her rising alarm instigating more pain from her aching head.

"Hey, hey, take it easy" Zack coaxed softly. He placed his hands on her side to stabilize her, halting her dangerous rocking.

"Let's go back inside where we can explain everything." Lucile decided it was a good idea, and a bed, no matter how shabby or incomplete it may be, would feel like heaven.

"Can you make it back down the hall?" Zack questioned with concern. She waved him off, taking a small step backwards.

"I'll manage." She forced a smile, to add some kind of reassurance, but it didn't appear to convince an already worried Zack. He looked at her apprehensively.

"Sure someone doesn't need an escort?" His apprehensive glance turned to that of mock scrutiny, as if to take on the role of a parent tending a sick child. She waved him off once more, sighing.

"I can walk fine, see?" She hoped on the spot to try and further her point, but it in the end backfired and sent a wave of nausea. Zack grabbed her at once.

"Back to bed for you sick lady." He scooped her up like a baby, one arm tucking under the back of her knees and the other cradled her head and back, pressing them against his midsection. She protested, thudding her hands against his chest lightly, but he only laughed merrily while he made his way back towards the lower hallway which led to the captain's room she had been occupying. Despite the constant rocking of the ship, which would be enough to demand the attention of any earnest sailor, not to mention demand their best efforts to stay afoot, Zack was able to keep his balance rather firmly, despite the added weight. Once she had calmed down and gave in to the idea of wriggling away from Zack's vice like grip, she took a few moments to settle, listening to nothing but the crash of the sea, the cries of nearby birds, and the rapid thudding of his heart, which for a moment seemed it was too robust for the body that caged it. Before she realized it, her eyes began to sink and the constant thump became almost a lullaby, too serene to resist. Consciousness was fleeing from her body, and before Zack had made it to the end of the shattered hall, she surrendered herself again to the realm of sleep, while the melodic echoes of his heartbeat followed her.

* * *

Lucile's second wakening proved to be a little more pleasant then her first one, her rousing signified by the groan low in her throat. She felt she was once again on the hard surface of the wooden makeshift bed and it elected another small groan from her before she opened her eyes and turning her head towards the two figures standing in front of her. Once her eyes were able to readjust to their natural focus, she could see a looming figure standing over her, and then spotted a second presence leaning against the wall, arms folded watching on calmly.

"You're awake."

Lucile returned her attention to one standing over her, which of course happened to be Zack. Rose still stood silently behind them, almost unmoving against the rotten wall like some sort of stone gargoyle.

"How long this time?" she asked groggily.

"Only around fifteen minutes or so" Zack replied with a shrug. "Your body's still weak I guess."

Lucile sat up, and was glad to find that some of her former vitality had returned. "Sorry about that."

"Don't need to be. You're only a _girl _after all." He winked at her good humouredly and she rolled her eyes with deliberate emphasis, adding in a groan for good measure.

For the first time, Rose left the sanctuary of the shadows and appeared behind Zack, her eyes low and shrewd.

"What's that about girls?" she asked with her usual coolness, only this time she added an undertone of threatening defiance, almost daring him to challenge her. Zack nearly jumped ten feet into the air, and quickly retreated away from arms length, worried that she may strike him for his prejudice, as good natured as it was. Lucile giggled at the sight of his face, and she chose this time to indulge in her small victory.

"Looks like its two against once Zacky boy. You'll have to do better then that." She poked her tongue at him to add further salt to the wound, which earned her grunts of disapproval from their steadfast companion.

"All jokes aside, I think it's time you fill me in" Lucile pushed after her laughter and taunts ceased. Zack gave Rose one of those 'you handle it' looks and she sighed, taking a step forward. She explained everything.

* * *

"Since then we've just been drifting, using the native sea life for food, and desalinating the sea water. We've run into no land yet, and it seems impossible to navigate the ship from the inside. Not that we could anyway, not a big ship like this with only three of us." It was silent for a while, and Lucile took a few moments to process the information before responding.

"So… What now?" was all she could ask, as stupid as it sounded. Rose shrugged.

"We'll have to wonder until we can find land. We have enough resources to survive on, so that shouldn't be a problem. The only problem is…"

"Running into a Sandorian fleet ship?" Zack finished as if reading her mind. Rose nodded.

"If that would happen, it will become problematic. All that we can do is hope that it continue to drift north and not south, away more Serdian waters."

"Do you know where we are?" Lucile questioned next.

"No. Although judging by the lack of any other marine presence, I'd say we've headed away, perhaps towards Tiberoa, although I can't be certain." Lucile nodded, and let out a sigh.

"Possessed by the spirit, huh?" The idea somehow both dismayed her and excited her at the same time. Going by Rose and Zack's account, she was able to free the spirits of some five soldiers. With that kind of power, it would certainly put her past the liability category and into the utility.

"So… is that a power I can harness?" Lucile asked with rising enthusiasm. Rose gave a short laugh, which surprised both of them, as dry and humorless as it was.

"I like the way you think but no. It's too sporadic to be reliable and too unstable to be viable even if it wasn't. Many, like me, never even get the chance to commune directly with the spirit's entity."

Lucile frowned in disappointment.

"Hey, at least you have a Dragoon Spirit" Zack reminded. He waited for Rose's harsh retort, which he thought would go along the lines of 'you were careless it's your own fault,' but it never came. Rose's glance deviated briefly before returning to Lucile.

"We humans cannot ever hope to truly harness the powers of the dragons."

"You can if you're Melbu" Zack added.

"Melbu is just caught up in the illusion of power, a delusion which he has been forever chasing. He is truly more foolish then I had ever imagined if he really expects to be able to master not one Dragoon Spirit but all seven."

"Then why do we need to stop him if he is destined to fail?" Lucile wondered.

"Because it's his inevitable failure that could destroy the very earth we live on. He is messing with power far beyond any of our knowledge, and when such forces are brought together and meddled with, the results are apt to be disastrous, and likely fatal. Whether he survives or not, it's the outcome of such a concentrated amount of magic that has me worried.

"And if his plan does succeed?"

Rose paused for a moment. "Then all hell breaks loose, and we end up wishing for the first scenario."

"Great" Zack said. "So in outcome A we have the world collapsing under the strain of concentrated magic, and in outcome B we have the psychotic power hungry Wingly wielding more power then he knows what to do with."

"Or outcome C, we kill him before he gets the chance" Rose interrupted. "It's really the only outcome that doesn't end with everyone dead."

The ship without warning jerked sideways with such velocity it sent the three of them reeling. For a fearful moment Zack actually thought the ship was going to fall on its side and capsize. Zack crashed to the wood below while Lucile fell backwards, her head bashing the wall behind her.

"What the hell was that?" Zack groaned, rubbing the lower part of his back that slammed against the unwelcoming floor.

"It feels like we had just been hit" Lucile spoke in a daze. Rose, who managed to keep herself from falling over entirely by dropping to one knee, stood up quickly, her eyes flashing with an all too familiar glee.

She drew her sword and nodded towards Zack and Lucile. They were both up immediately, Zack drawing his pole arm which rested across his back, and Lucile cracked her knuckles, a habit which she always went through before a battle ever since she was little. The three of them moved briskly into the hall and out to the deck.

"And that would be our problem" Zack commented as the three of them gazed upon a ship that matched them, if not surpassed them in both length and girth. A Sandorian battle ship, created from heavy metals not so unlike the Queen Fury which plated the long yet somewhat obscure perimeter that started out thin at the rear, got thicker towards the middle then back to a point towards the front. A standard Sandorian battle vessel, capable of housing many soldiers, equipped with considerable sea warfare utilities to boot. The large white sails fluttered with the wind, the Sandorian emblem printed boldly, supported by a large silver mast. Faint shouts and scuffles could be heard, and Rose could spot a few dozen soldiers on the deck alone.

"How did _that_ sneak up on us?" Lucile voiced in horror and amazement. Rose could only shake her head, her eyes mirroring the same flabbergast present in Lucile's tone. _Impossible. We were clear for miles in every direction from any sea encounters. How did this ship sneak up and ram us? _

"Be ready" Rose warned as she eyes the ship. The rift between them continued to grow, the Ghost Ship slowly moving away with the impact of the collision. "They will have to make the first move if they plan to board. Until then, we wait, and calculate." And so they waited, each second seemingly its own lifetime, each minute an eternity.

"If I'm not mistaken" Zack began, breaking the long silence. "They seem to be pulling away from us."

He was right. The collision moved their ship sideways to the west, while the Sandorian ship continued north, not taking a small bit of notice. This only furthered Rose's initial caution.

"Why would they ram us then drift away from us?" Lucile questioned.

"We were in their way?" Zack responded. Rose said nothing, only kept her thoughts and speculations to herself.

_It's almost leading us, daring us to follow. A trap? _The ship got a good distance in front of them, and if they did want to follow them they would have to decide now. The realization that they couldn't control the ship let alone set a distinct course bit at her, and she sighed inwardly in helpless frustration. _Damn it, if only we could steer this god forsaken ship _Rose cursed with rising fury. Just as she was about to remind her friends that there was nothing they could do, the ship jerked violently, the nose slowly sliding back on its former course.

"Is this ship… turning!?" Zack half shirked. Rose watched on in silent horror as the ship did turn, as slowly as it was. It continued on it arc until the nose was facing the vessel in front of them. Then, it began to sail. Slow at first, but it slowly began to move above the drifting speed it had been, and it was headed right for the Sandorian ship in front of them.

Zack shot Rose an accusing look. "Did you do something?"

"No. I'm just as surprised as you are." The ship's momentum continued to increase, to the point that Zack was sure they would crash right into the rear of the Sandorian ship which continued at a leisurely cruise.

"How do we slow this thing down? Unless we want to be the unexpected lunch guests in the Sandorian diner, we need to try and anchor the ship down" Lucile said with rising panic.

_Damn this cursed ship _Rose spat internally. _It's going to get us killed if it doesn't slow._

To their relief, the ship's slow climb in acceleration came to a halt. Then, in another act of astonishment, it began to decline, almost back to a dawdle

"Oooookay, what the hell was that?" Zack shrilled, eying both Lucile and Rose. Rose shook her head fervently, as if to shake something out off her head.

"Speed up"she willed, and as it turned out, the Ghost Ship obliged. Zack's eyebrow rose with that same accusation.

"Thought you didn't do anything?"

"I thought I didn't" Rose replied, baffled, and for one of the rare occasions, her face actually showing it. "Slow down" she spoke softly, although it didn't come out as a command but more question of confirmation. The ship once again complied, the wooden frames beneath them rumbling lowly as if someone had actually applied breaks.

"How'd you do that?" Zack questioned in amazement. Rose once again shook her head.

"I… don't know."

"Perhaps the ship looks at you as its next captain?" Lucile surmised. "Every ship needs a captain after all, and considering this is a ghost ship, I don't think it would be at all strange if it moved as if it had a mind of its own."

"Perhaps it does have a mind of its own" Zack added, and for once again felt the urge to tremble. It felt like realizing your own nightmares, like coming face to face with the boogeyman you were always told never existed. "This just gets creepier and creepier."

"I think the more pressing matter is what we are going to do about yonder ship." Lucile turned to Rose, waiting for a response. She didn't answer right away, she was still going through the possible course of actions, following the same working out process she did every time she was faced with a tough decision: eliminating the weakest link until she finally arrived at one viable decision. After a few minutes, she had arrived settled on a verdict.

"We'll tail them until they act or we are forced to."

"Thought you'd say that" Zack piped with a smile.

"If you don't like it, feel free to jump off and swim to shore" Rose replied coldly, earning herself a sour gaze. "For now, we sit and wait. We'll throw the ball in their court. In the meantime, stock up with any previsions you can find, and expect a confrontation, in one form or another." The three of them rushed off to do their own preparations, blissfully unaware that in a few hours they would reach the end of their calm, and enter the storm. A storm that would leave none unchanged.

* * *

**Note:** Phew, another late entry. Believe it or not, I just had to move houses, and for two of those weeks I was bunking with my relatives who had no net, can ya believe it? Just one interference after the next it seems . With a bit of luck, this will be the last hindrance and I can continue writing without any further delay, but with the ways things are lately I dare not hope.

On another note, I thought due to me being behind and the way the rest of the story will play out (at least so far), I decided to make this a slow kinda chapter. Since from now till the end it's pretty much going to be filled with strong action and direct conflict, I decided to make this the last resting point before the climax unravels. The last calm if you like. So for my fellow readers, read it, soak it up and take a deep breath, because from here on out it's going to get really fun :).


	43. Chapter 43

**Chapter 43**

As the last few hours of calm came to an end, what struck them next was not so much a storm, at least not at first, but an eruption. An eruption of events, some fortunate, more not which would eventually meld together into a maelstrom that would shake the very fabric around them.

They had been traveling ceaselessly for almost a week, the Sandorian ship in front of them making no effort to acknowledge their pursuers. On one particular afternoon as the evening waned into twilight, the fire covered afterglow in the sky indicating the sun's not so far away departure (A fitting scenery Rose would later reflect), the first sign of possible human life form presented itself on the far away northern horizon.

"What… is that?" Zack asked as the three of them moved to the damaged nose of the vessel. Zack had been wondering around the deck area while Rose and Lucile had been busy with their own agenda's down stairs when Zack spotted a large, almost vine like stick figure. It was too far to tell exactly what it was, but it also had two smaller only just visible joints sticking out on either side it with an almost identical resemblance to the larger one in the middle.

"That's not just some overgrown plant, is it?" He added after a small silence. He looked at Rose who only stood there and watched with a look of fixated shock and disbelief. While her faced remained as stoic as always, her eyes told what needed to be said.

"Trouble?" Zack asked. She nodded, verifying his growing concern.

"Big trouble. And in our road it seems. Zack sighed knowingly

"What kind of trouble?" Lucile inquired softly.

Rose pointed to the looming figure in front of them. "That is Aglis, the Wingly magical city raised above the water it previously dwelled in."

"An underwater city?" Lucile pressed with growing intrigue.

"No, at least not initially. It was once a glorious Wingly stronghold where advance practices of magic and other scientific process that involved magic were conducted. It once hovered above the sea until we saw it destroyed during the Dragon Campaign in a momentum shifting battle. As a result it crashed to the depths of the ocean and thought to be destroyed. In reality though, it was being headed by team of Wingly survivors who isolated themselves from the outside world, led by man named Savan who raised it to the surface eleven thousand years later." Rose paused for a moment, and then added grimly "Dart and I were there personally to witness the revival of Aglis."

"And?" Zack prodded, sensing her story was not at an end.

"Savan died with the Signet Sphere, sending Aglis back down to the bottom of the sea." Zack winced. "If what I fear is correct, and Wen and Melbu are behind Aglis' sudden reappearance, then…" she trailed off, as if not sure how to end the sentence. "Then this complicates matters further" she finally concluded, frowning bleakly.

"As if things weren't complicated enough" Zack commented with obvious sarcasm.

"Perhaps that's where the Sandorian ship is headed" Lucile surmised. Rose nodded in agreement.

"In any event, it does bring us small fortune. We can now cut straight to Zenebatos through Aglis rather then go to the Wingly's in Ulara."

"How can we have missed it before?" Zack wondered.

"I'd say it's only surfaced recently" Rose answered. "We'll keep following the ship, it should take us to Aglis."

"You think they'll let us just waltz in?" Rose pondered Zack's words for a moment. "Perhaps, perhaps not. Aglis is still too far to make any judgments at the moment so we'll just sail cautiously until we draw closer. But stay alert." With that, Rose decided she had conversed enough and left back downstairs, where she would further mull over the newly received information. Zack and Lucile stayed atop the deck and continued discussed matters, and it wasn't until well into the night that the three of them reunited for dinner, where it was eaten in relative silence, each in their own personal thoughts, wondering what the future had in store for them. As it turned out, they had a lot of time to speculate and they didn't get within a strategic view of Aglis until early the morning after the next, and even then it would be at least midday the following day, likely later that they would get a chance to actually enter.

Zack spent the first portion of the early morning gawking at what he first assumed to be a giant stick, which on closer inspection was actually a monstrous distorted tower, surrounded six tentacle like constructions that shot out of the sea around it, three on each side arching out into a kind of circle. The tower itself, which made of technology Zack couldn't even begin to fathom, the outside looked like a light pinkish cherry colour and as it spiraled up the several rings that hung around it, the edifice struck Zack as almost alive, like he could touch it and it would actually recoil. It almost seemed to move, to breath, and it sent a freezing chill down his spine.

"I don't see any ships or posted sentries, do you?" Zack asked Rose with an uncharacteristic somberness.

"No, but that doesn't mean there isn't any. Keep on your toes."

The Sandorian ship in front of them pressed on, seemingly oblivious that they weren't far idling behind. If nothing else though, it was almost certain that they mean to enter Aglis, but Rose hadn't decided yet if that was good or bad. As always, she would have to wait, and be reactive.

"Got a plan yet?" Zack questioned. Lucile was still asleep downstairs; she had been up most of the night, while Rose and Zack returned to the front of the ship to view Aglis, which seemed to be their unspoken meeting point of late.

"We find a way in, investigate the disturbance, find the portal to Zenebatos and then to Mayfil."

"Again, you make it sound like a simple task. Aren't you even a little worried?" She shrugged.

"Either way, this is our only direct method to get to our destination. Hopefully we'll find out some more information on the way." Zack raised an eyebrow.

"Not even a _little _scared or worried?"

Rose shrugged again. "There's no point in worrying or being scared, in most cases situations don't turn out anything like you thought they would."

"No" Zack agreed gravely. "They turn out worse."

Rose looked off into the now not so distant Aglis, and agreed.

"Even so, we can only work with what we have and know and calculate based on that, not on what could happen. Even after that, calculations can only take you so far. What you really need is to have sharp wits and always be reactive to your surroundings. Enter things with a calm and open mind, so if the situation does change, you can change with it. Stay flexible and don't stick to any one formula, for every formula has a solution."

"So expect the unexpected eh?"

Despite her self a small smile crept over Rose's face, and she soon found herself stifling a wave of laughter. "How can you expect what you don't expect?"

Zack looked at her, and understood how someone with her dry and black and white viewpoint could find such a senseless statement funny, twisted by her own innate practicality.

"Oxymoron's abound" Zack spoke with a smile of his own. A silence passed, a period in which was spent looking at Aglis, which seemed to grow with every passing minute, and then the grim reality of what was at stake came crashing down upon them, bringing back the solemn atmosphere.

Without thinking, seemingly possessing a mind of its own, Zack's hand sprung to life and moved on top of Rose's, whose hand was resting upon a cracked wooden rim that may have once been a safety barricade of some sort. Rose didn't appear to acknowledge it, only continued looking forward, absorbing the tranquility of the sea.

"We'll get through this" Zack said, turning to face her. "We have to." Now Rose turned to meet his gaze, and while her body shifted, her hand did not.

"We'll do what we can." Zack frowned, not liking the skepticism he heard in her tone.

"You know, you could try being positive for once. See the glass as half full rather then empty?" She stared at him blankly.

"I _am _being positive." Zack sighed, shaking his head.

"I'm not interrupting anything am I?" A voice sounded from behind them. Rose and Zack turned their heads to meet Lucile, who walked over to them casually.

"And what is it you think you'd be interrupting?" Rose shot sharply, not liking what she was inferring. Lucile's eyes widened in surprise for a moment before narrowing and setting on their hands, which were still intertwined.

"That" she nodded. Rose followed her gaze and was shocked to find Zack's hand still on top of hers. She had forgotten about it as their conversation grew more absorbing, and she withdrew her hand so quickly in almost threw Zack off balance. Lucile giggled in amusement while Rose tried to repress a burning redness which threatened to light her face up like a light bulb.

"What is it?" Rose snapped irritably. Lucile chuckled again at her obvious chagrin, but pressed on.

"Is it me or is the Sandorian ship slowing?" Rose glanced out at the ship, and after careful examination realized she was right, and if they continued at their current speed it wouldn't be long before they would both collide.

_Slow _Rose's mind commanded and she felt depths of her consciousness flash, like the ship itself acknowledged her decision. She felt the ship begin to deter, until its pace was no faster than a leisurely cruise. Rose still felt pangs of apprehension; the idea of a ship bowing to her every whim was still daunting, as fortunate as it turned out. _Every ship needs a captain _Rose recollected in reflection to Lucile's earlier words and let out a sigh. She seemed to be the appointed leader of a lot of things as of late, and the added burden weighed on her considerably.

"It'll take us even longer to get there at this rate" Zack moaned.

"Be patient, only a fool rushes into the unknown headstrong" Rose admonished. Zack let out a groan, and disappeared downstairs.

When he was out of sight, Lucile turned to Rose, who still gazed towards Aglis intently.

"What are you thinking?" Lucile asked. Rose shook her head lightly.

"I think we could be moving into a trap" Rose said uneasily.

"But that won't stop us, will it?"

"No. We have no choice but to continue forward. Just stay alert." She took once last glance at the Aglis, and then began her way to the back of the ship, unable to shake the apprehension that stole away into her mind, whispering that their struggle was futile, and in the end, they were all doomed.

* * *

The day progressed rapidly, and they made their way in front of Aglis in a portion of the time they thought it would take. The Sandorian Ship jerked suddenly, and then sped forward, as if to try and pull away from them. Rose increased the speed of their own ship, and to her surprise the ship still had quite a kick to it, and as a result they were keep the short distance the vessel had on them. Zack suffered from slight motion sickness, the boats constant jittering discomforted his stomach considerably but was able to put up with it. As bad as it made him feel, it wasn't anywhere near as sickening as his anxious.

It was only when they stood in front of it that Zack and Lucile truly comprehended how vast the tower was.

"What a magnificent structure" Lucile spoke, awestruck.

"Magnificent indeed" Rose agreed with a note of respect in her tone. Four separate rifts in the sea withered out like tendrils, splitting the sea into a sort path or waterbed that led into the entrance of Aglis.

"What is with that?' Zack inquired, pointing to the splitting paths.

"Exactly what it look's like. They are roads that lead to the entrance; with currents so strong even the likes of the Queen Fury would be powerless to resist them. Before we get caught in the entrenching tide, we must decide for sure if Aglis is our itinerary, because once we're in, there'll be no turning back."

"Of course" Zack added somberly. "So is it our destination?" And for the first time, Zack noted a kind of trepidation in her expression, as brief as it was.

"It's really our only destination" Lucile piped in. Rose shook her head in disagreement.

"There's still time to turn back. This is where the battle will truly begin, where every outcome will have direct implications. If either of you wish not to involve yourself any further, then say so now."

Neither of them said anything.

"What about you?" Zack asked. "Do you want to go ahead with this?"

"I will go ahead, even if the two of you do not. I have already pledged my cause to Shana, but more so I have a personal score to settle with Meblu."

"And I have one with Wen" Zack added, clutching the pole of his spear.

"And I have a desire to restore peace and tranquility" Lucile added finally, and a simultaneous understanding passed between the three of them. None of them would falter, none of them would run, none of them would give up. They wouldn't surrender, even if it coasted them their final breaths.

"Then it begins" Rose voice, and willed the ship forward, towards the split sea path that lies before them. But that wasn't the only thing that lies out before the three warriors. Their fate, now set in stone, also awaits them, like the troll under the bridge, waiting to unleash hell.

* * *

As they neared the entrance of Aglis, now well embedded in the snake like path that ushered them forward, the ship they had been following for last week submerged in the water, nose first. Slow at the beginning, but it wasn't long until the entire ship vanished behind the blue surface, the small ripples and shockwaves the only evidence of the vessels existence in the first place.

The three of them could only watched, flabbergasted.

"That can't be good" Lucile moaned. Rose gripped her sword's hilt instinctively, her mind screaming for her to be on guard. Something was wrong, very wrong, and her intuition, as strong as ever, told her she was walking into a trap.

"Be ready for battle, I fear we have walked right into the enemies hands" Rose remarked, her rough voice cutting the silence. Now that it was too late to turn back, they would have to deal with situation head on. Zack and Lucile nodded, both of them readying themselves for anything, their eyes scanning for any sign of hostile actions. But none were forthcoming, and as the deceptive serenity stretched into minutes, they began to relax a little.

_Was I wrong in leading us to a place that is so ideal for a trap? _Rose wondered, her doubt beginning to plague her.

As they continued to sail unhindered, the large entrance of Aglis, symbolized by a giant chrome door came into view.

"That's the entry point I assume" Zack said quietly. Rose didn't answer, it was a question that didn't need answering in the first place but she was distracted by her own inner thoughts, her intuition barking as loud as ever. Brow furrowed, she scanned the water around her, her eyes widening a touch when she noticed the water begin to ripple and bubble. She glanced around briefly to find the abnormality in water on the other side of the ship, and recognition dawned on her.

"Prepare yourselves, we are under attack" Rose warned softly, although her voice was filled with a fierce intensity. Zack grabbed is spear while Lucile readied herself, getting in her battle stance as she scanned the waters in search for the unknown threat. Several explosions of water erupted around them, outside the linear water path that shepherds them towards Aglis' entrance.

Vessels of the same ship they had been following emerged out of the water like submarines, encircling them in a kind of arc. Each ship seemed to have countless genome soldiers aboard, some armed with heavy armor and deadly weapons, others lightly armored, their waving hands an indication of magic users or medical practitioners.

"It appears a trap had been laid indeed" Lucile murmured disheartened. More ships began to surface in much the same way and Zack began to wonder if they had stationed the entire Sandorian fleet around Aglis. "They haven't barred of the entrance to Aglis yet, if we're quick perhaps we can slip in before they reach us."

"That's exactly what they want." Rose replied. "Although our movements are restricted, even more so by the current we're in, we'll be much worse off if they can amass this army on solid ground. If we fled into Aglis, which more men are likely waiting for us I'd wager, we'd be all but dead, just by the sheer numbers."

Zack looked around frantically, worry shifting to alarm. "Then what do we do? We're slowly hurtling towards Aglis anyway, it's not like we can just turn around."

Rose was silent for a moment. "I need time to think." Zack threw his arms up dramatically.

"We _don't have_ time. In case you forgot we have what seems like half of the Sandorian fleet boring down on us." He paused and glanced around, and to his horror more ships were continuing to surface. "Or perhaps the entire fleet by the way it's going, and we're nearly at Aglis' entrance." Exasperation filled his tone, and Rose eyed him narrowly.

"Shut up and start thinking" she snapped curtly. "Complaining will get us no where, and I know full well our situation. Your energy would be better spent thinking of ideas on how we can get around this."

Zack looked like he was ready to retort, but kept his mouth closed. The last thing they needed at a time like this was divided unity.

After a brief time in which it appeared that no more ships would join the already massive navy platoon Sandora had amassed, a thin silence spread across ocean in which not a word was uttered or a movement made. Sandora was poised, ready at any second to unleash the barrage of offense that unless the three could come up with a plan, would obliterate them all.

"I have only one solution, but before I voice it I would like to hear if either of you two have any" Rose spoke softly. Lucile shook her head and Zack did likewise.

"I can only see two options, we fight, which would inevitably result in our slaughter, or we flee to Aglis and hope another trap isn't laid there" Zack said grimly.

"Or we do both" Rose proposed calmly. "I'll stay here and fend off Sandora, while you two go inside and try to find your way to Zenebatos. That way even if there is a trap, it wouldn't be too large, the force inside, assuming there is one will be relying on the support of this army. If I can hold them off long enough, you two may be able to slip across."

Zack shook his head fervently. "That's suicide! You'll be killed! And even if you did do that, could you really hold them off for the time it would take for us to navigate through this giant tower without you as a guide? "

"You underestimate me" she said with a sly smirk. "This is where I thrive best."

"I'm inclined to agree with Zack, you'll be killed for sure. There has to be another option" Lucile voiced.

"There is no other option" Rose responded fatly. "And even if I do die, you two will be able to continue."

"We can't succeed without you and you know it!" Zack shouted in desperation. "Even if your plan does succeed, we end up in a city we've never been to and face forces that hold power far beyond out own. It'd only be a matter of time before we were caught and dispatched."

The ships began to advance.

"There's no time" Rose stated. She drew her steel rapier, holding it down by her side.

"No!' Zack cried, gripping the side of her shirt. "This is not what we are doing! We are all going to Aglis, that's my plan, the only _sane _plan. I'll take you by force if I have to!"

Rose turned to look at him so they were eye to eye, and a moment of sympathy flashed in her eyes, before she closed them and replaced it with a gaze of emptiness. She drew her sword up in an ark and drove the pommel into Zack neck, electing a painful groan as he slumped to the wooden deck, limb. Lucile cried shrilly.

"What did you do!?"

"What I had to. Now listen carefully, we haven't any more time to waste. I want you to transform and fly to Aglis. Take Zack with you."

Lucile looked at her doubtfully. "You'll die Rose; you can't take on the entire Sandorian army."

"Just trust me on this. The fly is only a few miles from here, can you manage that?" Lucile nodded in agreement. "Good. Once inside, look for a large teleporter, it's in a room towards the entrance. That'll take you to Zenebatos, where we'll link up once more."

"How do you know the doors will open for us?"

They will, don't worry about that."

Lucile glanced at her, still unconvinced. "Are you sure? About all of this?" Rose nodded.

"Now go, there is no more time to waste".

Lucile focused her energy, and after momentarily being encased in small pillar of light, she appeared as a Dragoon Knight. She walked over and picked up Zack, slinging him over her shoulder. In her transformed state, he was lighter then she expected and she now had no doubt she could carry them both to Aglis.

"Be careful and stay alive. Too much depends on it" Lucile said, and took flight.

Rose watched them leave, and then turned her attention to the looming task in front of her. The ark had several lays of ships now, and Rose could count at least two dozen, but she knew there could be nearly double that. Glancing over her shoulder one last time to make sure Lucile had gained fair amount off distance, she closed her eyes, succumbing to the all too familiar darkness. Snapping her eyes opened, now clad in her dragoon armor, she took flight, leaving the Ghost Ship behind.

_I'll have to assault them from above. _Gliding many feet into the air, she surveyed the pending battlefield. All the soldiers watched her with an unflinching gaze; however they seemed content to wait until she made the first move.

_Guess I'm going first. _Rose glanced around, wondering which method of attack she would use. She couldn't dive in full frontal and expect to survive without some sort of distraction. _A spell._

Internally she began to sift through her array of spells, looking for the best one that would fit the situation. Demon's Gate would be too risky in this environment, especially this close to Aglis where the spell could alter the tide not to mention cause irreparable damage to the Wingly city, so that wouldn't become an option unless she had no other choice. The ideal spell flashed at her, like a lit beacon.

Hovering ominously, she raised the arm holding the sword upright, the tip facing the sky. Closing her eyes and forcing her energy into a center, she molded it into a shard, ready to be expelled physically. The face of her blade began to fork with a dark energy, giving it the visual effect of a large stab of lightening. Drawing it out further, then energy began to hit the apex of her rapier and condense, forming into a small ball of matter.

"Death Dimension!" Rose bellowed, and angled her blade down towards the water with a swift arc, shooting the small orb into the sea. A dark, oil like liquid began to spread across the water like a shockwave, engulfing all of the Sandorian vessels. Which a quick flick of her sword, the circle of black began to explode in giant tides, throwing the ships against each other with reckless abandon.

"Don't fall into the sea, lest you wish to lose your soul!" she heard the soldiers cry. But many did fall, some overboard with the thrashing tides, other ships capsized entirely.

_Now! _Her mind screamed and she descended with the speed and guile of an eagle. Body pushed back and shoulders forward, she swooped over the ships, cutting down any soldiers who were unfortunate enough to get in front of her blade. Many didn't have a chance to react or even saw her coming, the brought on maelstrom distracted almost all of them, leaving them easy targets.

By the time she had nearly swooped across nearly the entire arc of ships, which left their force considerably smaller, they began to take notice of what she was doing and started to mount a barrage of ranged attacks.

Rose's eyes flickered with amusement she cupped the hand not holding her weapon, which birthed another sphere of matter. She aimed it at one of the ships and willed it forward like a propeller, thrusting the orb at blinding speed causing it to smash into the intended target. The ship flared with dark flames which spread like wildfire, eventuating in the boat's inevitable descend into the dimension below.

She formed another ball and shot it likewise, taking out another three ships before she had to stop and dodge the few blasts of magic that shot from the other vessels. With typical nimbleness, she weaved around them with the ease of a trained professional. As the onslaught ceased momentarily, the remaining soldiers recharging for another attack, she readied herself for another swoop, before a near deafening roar from under the water paused them all.

The water below began to shutter, and as everyone froze and turned their attention to the raging sea, their battle seemingly forgotten, a giant blue sea serpent sprung fourth, growling angrily. Rose stared in shock as the giant snake drew level with her, despite how high she was. The small scales gleamed brilliantly with large black spines sticking out of them, coursing down the animals back and body. It drew its mouth back in a snarl, revealing jagged dagger like teeth. The monster regarded her with large, black slit eyes, lowering its head and showing its large blue horn, which Rose knew immediately would be strong and sharp enough to penetrate her Dragoon Armor with no difficulty.

_A dragon! _Rose thought with an amazed wonder. _But more importantly._ She glanced down at the twisting tides, and saw that the dragon was completely unaffected by her spell. Upon closer examination she was surprised to see not only was the monster impervious, but was slowly dispelling it, the blanket of darkness over the sea slowly fading, and with it the gushing tides. It wasn't too long before the sea began to return to its former tranquility, only the bobbing of the surviving boats causing the remaining ripples and small waves.

_This is a problem _she thought inwardly and winced. _Especially if it's being controlled by Sandora._ The dragon almost appeared to read her mind and it gnarled its features into a strikingly human like grin.

"Let's dance" she invited, and as the dragon howled once more, the two forces clashed in a battle that was only spoken about in fairy tails or grand legends.

* * *

Lucile arrived at the large door and landed on the small strip of dark land that preceded it. Zack began to stir, but she ignored it, her focus on the roaring battle that Rose was intertwined in.

_What is that beast? _Lucile wondered with growing anxiety. _I pray for you Rose, but with these overwhelming odds even I doubt your survival. _The door screeched, snapping her back to reality and the giant door began to shift open.

She didn't enter right away, but stood their, pondering on what to do. It may not be too late to fly there and try and bring Rose back with her, even if it was against her wishes. _What should I do? _

Deciding to trust Rose's intention, she stepped inside the door, Zack stirring once more, although more violently this time.

"I know you want to help as well. But the best we can do is believe in her and go ahead with the plan" Lucile said softly.

_No, she needs us! _Zack wanted to cry but again all that came out was a wince, and as Lucile carried him inside Aglis, the large door shifting back to a close, he opened his eyes to take once last view of the battle, before it was lost to the large frame of the door, and with it his consciousness.

* * *

Rose tried another trust of her blade, but only found the same result; it bounced off the plate armored like scales that protected the sea dragon's skin. She tried to project her consciousness into the Dragon's, a method that they had used a long time ago to tame and befriend dragons, a skill that came with being a Dragoon, master of dragons. But she wasn't able to reason with it. She was blocked by a wall of fury and rage, one which had turned this once noble creature into a reckless killing machine.

_What have they done to you? _Rose wondered with anger and sadness. Although she had hoped to avoid it, Dragon's were a dying species as it was, just like any animal that turns rabid or bites it's master, it had to be put down.

With a sigh, she reloaded with new resolve, and this time shot a ball of dark matter at the serpent, drawing a cry of agony as dark flames seared the scales and skin. It quickly dived into the water, and Rose took this time to fly down and take a few more soldiers lives who had been bystanders since the dragon's arrival.

The dragon reappeared a minute later, flames extinguished, its eyes full of anger and pain.

_I don't have the energy to keep this up. _Exhaustion due to overuse of magic tugged at her, threatening to consume her entirely. It began to show physically, for she was only narrowly evading the onslaught of the soldiers who resumed their ranged assault, and on more then one occasion the sea dragon managed to collide into her with its stone like snout, although she avoided contact with the horn.

Now visibly panting, she reassessed her options. A high level spell was out of the equation, even if she could pull it off with the small reservoirs of energy she had left, it would leave her defenseless and likely unconscious, where she would drown or fall prey to the creatures below. She cursed inwardly at the unexpected arrival of the dragon, which threw her plans askew. She had never even considered something like this, and as a result she may yet have to pay for it.

"Astral Drain!" Rose cried and rocketed towards the dragon, ramming her thin blade between its scales and into its skin. It bellowed in pain, and Rose soon felt her own energy restore. She pushes harder on the link between them, stealing the dragon's energy and reeling it in for herself, but before she could drain a sufficient enough amount of energy she felt a strong explosion impact her from behind, throwing her off balance and disrupting the spell.

Now free of the daze that had been brought on by the life steal, the dragon once more slammed its hard nose into Rose's body, which sent her hurtling towards the crashing waters below. She fanned out her wings, halting her sharp descent, but before she could regain her composure or even hope to bring up her sword for a block, the dragon struck once more, and this time she felt her sternum shutter under the impact. Expelling a steam of blood from her mouth, she once again plunged downward, this time unable to find the energy to stop herself from crashing into the ocean. Feeling not only the metallic taste of her blood but also the taste of her body's resignation to defeat, she closed her eyes as her vision began to blur.

_Zack… Lucile… I'm sorry. _

With a loud splash she hit the water, sinking to the watery depths beneath.

* * *

**Note:** Phew, an intense chapter eh? Sorry about the (once again) late update, this time I am solely to blame. I got kinda lazy and half way through the chapter I found it hard to write to the level I consider satisfactory, so to avoid wrecking the story I have produce I took a week break to clear my mind. It seems to have worked, but I'll let you be the judge of that, so hopefully the long wait was worth it.

Also once more I improvised with Rose's spells here, like using her Death Dimension spell in the water which caused the tides to thrash about as well as create an underwater nexus leading to the nether dimension. I hope the mixture of elements doesn't come across as too unbelievable (even for fantasy standards); it's just an idea that popped into my head. I always thought the spells were lacking both numbers and diversity anyway.


	44. Chapter 44

**Chapter 44**

As soon as Zack regained consciousness, which was only ten or so minutes after their entry to Aglis, Zack sprung to life, bashing desperately against the sealed door with clenched fists, screaming as if yelling would help his cause. It didn't open, no matter how hard or how loud he cried, and after several minutes of trying, he fell to his knees in defeat.

They were still in Aglis' first room, standing on one of many violet platforms which had one, sometimes two or three green rings on them, which Zack would later recognize as teleportation devices. Above and under them sheets of water flowed, held in position by some unforeseen force, and Lucile could only gape at the technology that it would take to pull off such a feat. Various water run offs and machines of all obscure sizes were stationed around the lavender setting, a particular round spaceship like dome loomed in the middle with various other mushroom shaped rooms.

"The battle has ended I think" Lucile announced in a low tone, but Zack didn't response. He just knelt near the door, unmoving. "I can't tell if she's dead or not but... I can no longer feel her presence."

"We should have helped her" Zack fired back, his voice full of fury and anguish. "How could you just leave her out like that!?"

"I had no choice, it was what she wanted" she replied solemnly.

"So!? The idea was ludicrous from the start, you should have persisted! But instead I get knocked out and taken away like some nascence while she has to fight a battle an entire team of Dragoon Knights wouldn't be able to handle!"

Lucile felt sympathy for him, but she had to find a way to calm him down. They needed to remain level headed if they hoped to navigate through this maze, not to mention take on the challenges that lie in wait.

"What's done is done, we have to have faith in Rose's decision and continue on to Zenebatos as planned." Zack stood up and turned to her, his eyes narrow, portraying a seething rage that was on the verge of erupting in a giant explosion. He clenched his hands and felt his body shutter.

"We're in this position because you failed to help purser Rose off her course of self righteous suicide" he said in a low voice full of malice and fury. "If we had of all stayed together and –" he didn't complete his sentence, and was halted by an impact that struck his face, forcing him to take a step back to stabilize himself. Eyes wide in surprise, he looked at Lucile whose open hand she used to strike him waved threateningly, ready to hit again if need be.

"Get a hold of yourself Zack. Rose has made a sacrifice, whether it costs her life or not yet I cannot tell, but we must use it to continue rather then waste it on petty quarrels."

For a moment Lucile feared her words had not reached him, and he had let himself plummet to the deep end, his eyes flashing dangerously as if he would retaliate. Apparently she read his expression wrong, and he dipped his head low so his head and hair covered his face. "You're right. I apologize for my lack of self control."

"It's fine, as long as you can keep them controlled so we can find a way around here. For all we know it may be no safer in here then out there."

Zack nodded and took a moment to survey the surroundings he had neglected in his initial frenzy for release, but he kept his face stern.

"Looks like they use teleporters as the main means of transport" Zack surmised, and proceeded to explain the process of teleportation, much like Rose had to him back in Ulara.

"Do you know where each one goes?' Lucile questioned, seemingly unhappy about the ideal of teleporting from area to area. Zack frowned and shook his head.

"No I don't." Lucile's worry grew. "Yet we have no choice but to venture forward, and hope fortune shines upon us."

"After recent events, I wouldn't count on lady luck if I were you" she replied, but made her way forward and stood on the platform. It light up and Lucile looked down hesitantly before stepping backwards.

"You first" she said, gesturing for Zack to take the lead. He did so without complaint, and a small green sphere encased his body and shot downward a few feet, landing him on a small straight-lined plateau that had another green teleporter on the end of it. Zack turned his head to Lucile, who was still standing above him, still seemingly apprehensive about teleporting. Slowly, she stood on the green circle and it too whooshed her to the platform below.

"Not so bad is it?" Zack asked casually. Lucile's checked herself, as if for any injuries or any physical changes, and shook her head.

"It's creepy" she spoke with anxiety. Lucile seemed to have caught to worried glance of her comrade, and forced, although unsuccessfully a meagre smile. "I'll manage."

"We have little choice to do anything else." Zack strolled forward, and with a fixed concentration took off again. Lucile cleared her throat and prepared to do the same, not enjoying the sinking feeling it made her stomach feel, like going down a sharp drop unexpectedly. Willing herself forward, she did the same.

The distance on this particular teleportation trip was considerably larger, taking them from the outskirts into the city itself. Lucile came out looking nauseous, and When Zack looked ahead and spotted many more teleporters, his heart dropped.

_She won't be able to handle all this _he thought sadly. Standing on a circular platform, Zack could see two different options, one on his immediate left, barred by a door with unfamiliar glyphs scribed upon it, and forward, which led to numerous more platforms and teleporters which looked to lead further into the city.

"I'm guessing that's the room which Rose was talking about?" Lucile inquired, pointing to the room with the strange door. It bore no handles or any kind of visible opening mechanism, the small gap it's blocking and the thick smoky air escaping through the small opening underneath the on indication it wasn't just an ordinary wall.

They walked up closer to it, examining the peculiar murals that could only be assumed to be their way of writing or coding. Zack tried pounding on the wall and looking for any near by controlling devices that may grant them entry, but none were found.

"Tch, shoulda known it'd be too easy if we could simply waltz in and make our way to Zenebatos without a hitch" Zack muttered in frustration. Lucile agreed.

"Perhaps we should travel further into the city to try and find…" she trailed off when she spotted the many green disks that signified the use of teleportation and her face was drained of the small colour it had left. "Who is in charge" she finished.

"Hey, you can wait here if you like and let me go on in" Zack pressed softly. The White Dragoon Knight shook her head furiously.

"No, the last thing we need is to split up again. I'll come with you, regardless of what I have to go through." Zack nodded, deciding persuading her otherwise would be impossible. Leading first as he did before, Zack zipped through the multiple teleporters that were stationed on the various plateaus, each shaped in obscure shapes and sizes, and to both Zack and Lucile's horror, some held up to three or even four teleporters, effectively making the city an afloat maze.

Several times they had to back track, usually when they came to a dead end. Lucile hadn't gotten any worse with her fear, but nor had she gotten any better. Unlike Zack, it just seemed like something she couldn't become accustomed too.

"I hope not all the Wingly cities use these" Lucile had commended during their journey across the city. Zack didn't reply, but knew that they did, he thought all of them did and to the Wingly's, teleportation was just as usual as walking.

After what felt like hours, the two finally arrived at another indoor room, shaped like dome alcove. When they entered they were presented with the first sign of the city's inhabitants. All garbed in the same white and purple striped robe, they walked back and forth, tending the various power sources. Or at least that's what Zack assumed them to be, they were large glass balls with a rod of what seemed to be active electricity sparking, although it was more likely a source of magic, encased in a purple semi circle that appeared to be made out of the out of the outer worldly fabric that surrounded them.

"Hello?" Zack said to one of the four persons that worked in the area. The appeared human, although Zack guessed they were Wingly's by the way they easily summoned magic. He got no response, not even a small manner of acknowledgment.

"Hey I'm talking to you" Zack pushed, annoyed by their deliberate disregard. Again the worker ignored him, brushing past him as if he didn't exist. Losing his temper, Zack grabbed one by the shoulder, turned him around so he was eye level with him and said "I said I was talking to you."

The eyes were blank and devoid of any human emotions or feelings. It was like looking at an inanimate object and expecting it to acknowledge you.

Zack was taken aback, and his hands fell to his sides, freeing the worker. It pushed past him absently and continued with its tasks.

"They look exactly like the genome soldiers" Zack remarked.

"They probably are" Lucile replied. "Programmed only for certain tasks, and likely only to respond to certain people."

"They're just... shells… machines" Zack breathed with horror. She nodded in agreement, glancing over at the workers with sympathy, for they weren't really alive. Drones are all they were.

"Should we dispatch them?" Zack wondered.

"I wouldn't" Lucile advised. "For all we know these are the only things keeping this city from plummeting to the bottom of the ocean. There will have to be some kind of authority around here, so let's search for that."

"Good idea" Zack agreed. They walked towards the exit, which wasn't far away given the size of the small room. Once outside and back in the vast openness of the underwater city, they were confronted by more platforms and teleporters.

"More of this?" Lucile complained, trying to follow the trail of green circles and where decipher where it would lead. She was unsuccessful; it was like trying to follow a thread in a ball of wool. Lucile saw Zack begin to open his mouth, but she intervened before he did, knowing he would offer her another chance to stay behind.

"I'm still coming" she assured with a small smile, one that looked half way believable this time, even if a little wan.

Following another chain of linking teleporters that led them through more unusual alter like terraces (Although this time more straightforward and not so confusing) they were standing in front of another room which appeared similar to the first one in that it too was sheathed in a igloo like dome. Inside the circular room was a single worker and a ring in the middle that emitted a faint magical glow around it. Streams of prismatic magic funnelled from the sides and disappeared into the nothingness below.

"This city is outlandish" Lucile remarked with awe. "I've never dreamed of such a place. The Wingly race is truly majestic."

"And full of dangerous, power hungry dictators" Zack grunted with disgust. It was then that Lucile really began to realize the deep roots of his visible prejudice towards the ancient race.

"Not all Winglies are bad Zack. After all, it was a Wingly that assisted Rose in the initial battle against Melbu" she explained. Zack snorted.

"It was also the Winglies that have perused us over the world, oppressed us to slavery eleven thousand years ago, tried to destroy the world, and to top it all off it, may have single-handedly caused the death of one of the two last good dragoon knights and our last hope to resolve this problem that doesn't end in annihilation."

"Zack…" Lucile murmured, not sure how to respond or try to ease his mislead convictions. Yet it wasn't without its own justification, they were responsible for a lot of wrongs in the world, but probably no more then they had wronged other species, like the dragons or Gigantos for example. Even though she used them now, which made her feel like somewhat of a hypocrite, she hoped one day they she could free the dragons, letting them live their own lives rather then killing them and trapping their remains in a sphere for our own purposes.

_Dragons and humans can never co exist _she remembered Rose explaining during their travels. _Dragons possess an engine of destruction even larger then the humans and Winglies combined. _

"Let's just move on" he snapped, abruptly closing the issue and startling Lucile out of her reverie. When he walked away Lucile shook her head, hoping his anger would not cloud his judgment.

The underwent another process of shifting around in a small green bubble, a process in which now even began to ebb away the remainder of Zack's patience (Which has lessened considerably since their discussion, and since then he hadn't uttered a word) until a sudden quake shook the entire city. What followed the violent vibration was a piercing screech, not so unlike that of the Fire Bird in the Villude. It came from a room that loomed above them, which in comparison to the rest was noticeably larger than the other structures. A small deck like platform with an obligatory green teleport sphere stuck out not too far from them.

"That didn't sound human" Lucile murmured.

"It wasn't" Zack replied bluntly. "Another enemy we'll have to conquer it seems."

Continuing along the line of teleports and plateaus, they two managed to reach the entrance to the large structure, which wasn't dome like the rest were, it was more solid and rectangular and dipped under the water below.

"Be ready" Lucile warned. "I feel danger." Zack nodded, his hand moving closer to his spear. Slowly, Zack leading the front, they both entered the room.

"Long time no see" a voice greeted humbly. Zack snarled once he detected it was Wen, hovering above the air with the signature ethereal, jet like wings all Winglies bore. They stood on a violet precipice like platform, another one although much larger in diameter resting several feet apart. Between the two areas seemed to have once been a bridge, but has since been destroyed, denying them any access across. Wen smiled narrowly on the opposite plateau.

"Yet it seems two faces are missing for our delightful reunion" he began, examining the two of them. His eyes fixed on Lucile. "And we have been presented with an intruder." Lucile eyed him narrowly.

"You are the White Silver Dragoon Knight I presume, the avatar of all that is good and pure." Lucile said nothing, only continued to watch, inwardly ascertaining the level of threat. "How rude I am, I seem to have forgotten my manners. Allow me to introduce myself, I am-" Lucile interrupted him with a voice that held a razor sharpness to it, silencing him at once.

"I know who you are." He raised an eyebrow at her.

"Then I guess we can skip the formalities and jump straight to the part where you both die" he replied cheerily, although underneath the false light hearted exterior lied the malevolence Rose and Zack had told her about.

"Did you have something to do with Kongol's death?" Zack shot, his temper fuming. "I have no doubt you were behind the magic that killed him. Such cowardice was undeserving of such a warrior. You could at least have to gall to try and kill him yourself."

"Quite the contrary my former pupil. It was _you _who killed him." Zack looked at him in momentary confusion before his eyes burned with their former rage. He was about to protest his statement, but Wen began talking before he could cut in.

"It's true I administered a poison, but it was not fatal."

"He died because of it! How is that not fatal!?" Zack cried. Wen halted him with his hand, signalling him for a chance to finish his explanation.

"It was designed to merely incapacitate. It would do nothing more then bring on a heavy fever, an ailment which could be cured with a few days rest. Yet here's the quirk" Wen said with a widening grin. "It's actually a Wingly poison used to kill dragons, dated back from the Dragon Campaign. So while it won't kill a normal human, if the bearer should be induced with any dragonic substances or magic, then the effects become quite different."

The images of the event flashed in both of their minds, and how as soon as Lucile attempted to heal the sickened comrade, he suddenly dropped dead.

"You twisted bastard" Zack breathed with spiteful vehemence. "You knew we would use dragon magic to try and cure him!"

"Alas, the last of the Giganto's death and the extinction of their race are not on my shoulders, but on yours."

Zacks body shuttered with un-containable fury and grief, and as he roared with a mixture of hate and sorrow, he pulled out a small red ball out of his satchel that was warm to the skin. He threw it towards his former mentor, shrieking as did, a muffled explosion followed by a cloud of smoke covering the buoyant Wingly.

When the cloud evaporated, Wen was still unmoved, an arm outstretched with a light barrier around him, humming softly as it shielded him from the impact.

"Petty tricks like that will do you no good" he said calmly. "And with another one of your comrades dead, perhaps the most important one, what will you do now?"

Zack seized the spear from his back and held it menacingly. "I'll thrust this into your black heart and bathe in the blood of your death!" He shouted like a man who had finally snapped and lost all remnants of insanity and plunged into a river self absorbed hatred and devastation. Lucile had to calm him to his senses; he was playing right into the hands of Wen, who was very cunning in his method of capitalizing on Zack's distraught emotions.

"It's me I wouldn't worry about" he said with the same composed tone. "It's that." He pointed below the chasm that separated the two, and the water began to ripple as another screech echoed from below, nearly deafening them. The water exploded in a circle of rain as the source of the cry made its presence known. Standing before them, glaring at them balefully, was the sapphire scaled dragon.

* * *

Rose opened her eyes to the scenery of a heavy sun and the taste of dry sand in her mouth. Stirringly slowly, her hair sprawled over her face and feeling a solid surface below, she craned her neck a little to try and get a glimpse at where she might be. A surge of pain erupted, prompting her to drop her head back into the sand with a low, painful groan.

_Where am I? I should be dead. _She was lying in a modified sort of fetal position, her hands and legs curled into her body. She tried to piece back together the events that transpired in hopes her memory will recall something new.

_I remember falling towards the sea… and then only blackness. _There was nothing else after she blacked out, she was sure she was going to die… and now she was at…

With sudden urgency, despite the surges of pain it would bring on she willed herself upright, but only got as far rolling on to her stomach, her elbows and forearms planted into the sand.

_I'm in the Death Frontier! _She thought with amazement. _How? _

Barrens of sand stretched out in every direction, as well as high cliffs and ledges that were renowned for making it the maze it was. For many minutes she just laid there, trying to think of an explanation as to why she was alive, and how she got to the Death Frontier. After no explanation came to her, she thought she would have to find them herself, and lying on the sand like a washed up sea animal would not help her cause.

Slowly moving, she pushed herself upright into a sitting position, although her legs wobbled under the weight and for a moment she feared they would buckle. After several more minutes, she attempted to stand.

She got half way there, her knees straight and her body slowly arching when she was hit with a sudden wave of nausea, causing her to double over and then tumble to her knees, setting of a fit of choking coughs and splutters, before expelling small loads of water from her mouth. After the fit died down and she was able to clear her mind and think again, she realized that she had crashed into the water, and by how week her body felt and the way she had just forced out what felt like a lung full of water, she also began to understand she had come damn near close to drowning.

_But that still doesn't explain how I got here _she thought with frustration. She felt noticeably better now, and she ran her hands across her body, examining for any injures. To her relief she only suffered from light cuts and bruises, but what next entered her mind worried her more then any injury could. _My belongings!_

She checked her satchel which was still fastened to her waist, and was even further relieved to find that her and Kongol's Dragoon Spirits was still with her. Also, not a few meters away was her sword, resting on the sand next to her.

_Then this isn't the work of Wen or Sandora_. _Is it Charlie and her group? _After she felt she had recuperated, she attempted for the second time to gain a vertical basis, this time she was met with more success, although the small victory didn't come without enormous effort.

Now, standing above the sand where the burning rays of the looming sun could beam on her the previously exposed parts of her skin, it was ironic to find that the source of what nearly killed her earlier by having too much was threatening to kill her again by having too little.

_I'm dehydrated, and if I don't find a spring soon where I can replenish my lost liquids, I __won't last past the day. _Her skin seared, and to her horror it already turned a pinkish shade of red. It wasn't surprising, considering how pale her skin was due to her lack of any real sun exposure. _I'll be as burnt as a well done steak _she thought unhappily. Sighing deep and reluctantly, she took a step forward, in what would begin one of her most painful and enduring journeys.

* * *

When the sun began to waned behind the seemingly never ending crags that outlined the gruelling desert, what was left of Rose's hope had been all but snuffed out. Her feet burned and blistered, sweat seemingly covering every orifice and her skin and throat felt so parched she was sure she could cook a hot meal on it. But her fortune began to change, lady luck showing a hint of a smile. She spotted not a few miles east of where she was a small oasis, which cultivated the only real life form other then dead shrubs. Monsters were far and between, and she had enough strength to fend them off (although just barely, she then decided she would not die of thirst before a roaming fiend would claim her; she was probably the only source of true meat they had seen for gods knows how long) but she grew tired and cumbersome. Making her way as fast as she could (hoping to gods it wasn't her mind playing tricks on her) she exhausted the last of her energy getting there.

Small jutted rocks circumference the small crystal blue pond, and around it even small green bits of plants and grass prospered, before being engulfed by the deadness of the sand and barrens. Kneeling down and relishing the soft, moist touch of the plants, she dipped her hand in the water. The water was lukewarm, a little warmer then she had hoped but it did ease the alarming thoughts that portrayed her death. Getting on her knees and cupping her hands, she gathered some of the water in her hands, and then took a tentative gulp, as if to check for poison.

The water was a little salty, because of the dryness and sand she assumed, but it was fresh and worked wonders at moisturising her sizzling mouth and throat. After a small gulp, she dipped her hands in it again, this time not stopping until she thought she had nearly drank the pool dry. When she finished, she was glad to know she hadn't even looked like lowering the volume of water in the oasis (although by the way her stomach felt, she was sure she had) and she fell on her back, exhausted beyond all measure.

_And so I live to fight another day_. Feeling herself with one hand, she rolled up into a sitting position, sighing with vexation. _I feel sticky and horrible. _Glancing around to make sure no monsters were roaming the near by area, she placed down the sword she had retrieved before she underwent the trek, and slowly began to disrobe, peeling off the fabric that stuck to her like glue because of her perspiration. Walking over to the water and dipping them in, she gave them a quick scrub with her hands, rang them dry then placed them in the sun for drying. Once that task had been done she slowly lowered herself in the pond, the water washing away her uncomfortable dryness, cleaning her cuts and even slowly eroding away at the fatigue that threatened to collapse her. Sighing with content (the water only just covered her chest); she leaned against the rocky outline, closing her eyes and soaking up the stillness.

_This is heaven._ She still kept her weapon near, in case a fiend should decide that now would be the ideal time to prey on their potential meal, but as she stood in the small oasis for what felt like hours, she was confronted with no disturbances. It was as if the oasis itself was a sanctuary, repelling any would be evil doers.

Finally she exited the pool, went into her bag and put on a makeshift towel (her belongings had dried out to her delight) and sat down by a palm tree, the green flowery limbs providing the necessary shade for her to sleep, and once it consumed her, she didn't wake until late the following day.

* * *

"Lucile, now!' Zack boomed from the top of the dragon. He was standing on its skull, riding it and maintaining balance by means of his spear, securely in lodged into the beast's eye. It thrashed about over the water, which looked a mighty long way away from where he was standing.

They had led the dragon back to the teleport platforms, which they used tactically to gain the advantage. Using Lucile in her dragoon form she was able to draw the beast to the lower plateaus, where Zack was looming above on a higher one, granting him the opportunity to jump and dive on its head, spear first.

Now, with one eye and a body full of bow wounds and pumping adrenaline and rage, the dragon roared, thrusting its head towards the closest solid piece of land, attempting a kind of head butt.

_Shit! I'm gonna be crushed!_

Two ethereal arrows darted towards the dragon, one piercing him through its slightly ajar mouth, the other impacting on the dragon's chosen platform, demolishing it. The beast faltered, its head raising up reflexively for a few moments, but that was all Zack needed. He pulled out his spear and gave it a final jam into the soft skin below. The dragon howled, and Zack quickly recovered his spear and jumped.

"Catch me Lucile!"

Propelling with bullet like velocity, she grabbed Zack in mid air. "Wrap yourself around my body and hold on" Lucile instructed calmly. Zack complied, wrapping his legs and arms around the silver plate of Lucile's dragoon armor. He almost resembled that of a spider.

With Zack fastened to the front of her body, Lucile called upon the last of her energy to summon a final volley of arrows, shotting them quickly at the falling beast. They shot through the water, disappearing. The painful shriek that followed indicated that some, if not all the arrows hit their target. Hovering for a minute longer, making sure it would not rise once more, she descended to one of the undamaged platforms.

"What happened to Wen?" Zack asked with worry. He was likely lurking around somewhere, waiting to strike them when they are weak.

"Wait here" Lucile said softly, and she headed towards the room, he was last seen in. Gliding in wearily, she prepared an arrow. _I have very little energy left. If he decided to fight us now, then… _she heard a sound coming from the back of the room and she turned quickly, aiming her bow with one eye, ready to unleash. As it turned out, nothing was there.

_Where is he? _She wondered. A sickening feeling invaded her gut, and with a flash of alarm she spun around towards the exit. _Shit! He's after Zack! _

Zack sat on the lavender floating archway, heaving heavily. _Is she battling him now? Why did she run off like that? _

"So you managed to defeat it after all."

Zack tilted his head upwards, and to his surprise found a hovering Wen, grinning pleasantly. Zack stood up at once, readying for battle. Wen waved his arm softly. "I wish not battle Zack. There is no need, at least not yet. But listen if you would, I have important information.

Zack looked up mistrustingly. "What are you trying to pull this time?"

Wen's good hand disappeared into his green robe, and when it returned, he was holding a red orb. When Zack recognised what it was it gleamed, as if to resonate to the call of its master.

"Catch" he muttered and dropped it. A moment of paralysing shock overcame Zack before he ran to the edge of the platform and extended his hands, clasping the plummeting sphere. It wasn't as heavy or impacting as he had braced, and it nearly caused him to lose balance and topple over to the water below. Luckily, he regained his equilibrium at the last moment and fell on his back with a thud.

"Also, you'd do well to note the door that once barred your way is now ajar." Zack appeared to take no notice; he was fixated on the Red Eye Dragoon Spirit, an intoxicating wave of relief and completion overflowing him. It wasn't so unlike what Rose felt when she was reunited with her spirit, it was a feeling or regaining something that you thought you had lost and would never get back.

Peeling his eyes away, he looked upwards, but Wen was already gone. Surveying the area briefly to make sure he hadn't just changed positions, he let out a small sigh of relief. He was gone.

Not too long after Lucile returned with a worried expression on her face.

"Are you alright?' she asked. Zack had moved to a sitting position, and he still stared at the red stone still attached in his hand. He nodded.

"Wen gave me this and left" he spoke calmly. He looked up at the watery ceiling, trying to figure out what his latest actions meant.

"But why? Doesn't he need them?" Lucile asked. She was now just as bewildered as he was. Zack shook his head.

"I haven't the slightest idea." He put the gleaming orb back into his satchel but his face didn't facial expression didn't change. At first it appeared to be one of great relief, but on a closer inspection it was one of dim despair.

_Why is he... of course! Wen mentioned another fallen Dragoon Knight… could he mean Rose? _Lucile knew it had to mean her; she was the only other knight still alive, at least to her knowledge. It was her turn to feel the hopelessness misery, but she pushed it back as best she could. _He could be lying to try and break our hope and spirit. I won't believe Rose is dead until I see her with my own eyes. _Casting her eyes back to the stricken Zack, she grimaced inwardly. The chances of her surviving were slim at best, and despite what she wanted to believe otherwise, deep in her mind, part of her believed Wen.

Zack got to his feet and turned to Lucile, his face stern yet wrought with grief and worry. From the small amount of time they had spent in here it looked like he had aged ten years.

"I don't know what Wen is planning, but I do not trust him. His intentions cannot be good, and don't let him fool you into mistaking this as an act of assistance. This will in some way have to benefit him, and until I figure out how or why he has relinquished possession, we have to keep on our toes."

"I know" Rose replied. "But what now? We've hit a dead end it seems."

"Wen said something about a door previously blocked becoming unblocked. It could mean the door to the main teleporter, although it could just as easily be a trap as well."

"What do you propose we do?" He shrugged.

"May as well go and see if the door opened. Got no other option really."

Lucile agreed and began to walk towards the green circle closest to her, shuttering at the thought of going all the way back to the entrance. Tossing her worries aside, she was the fist to leave the plateau. Zack walked up to it slowly, taking a final look backwards. Tears crystallized at the corners of his eyes, threatening to gush down his face like a river, but he held them back. This was not the time to shed tears. Instead, he allowed himself a silent hope. _Please be alright Rose. We need you. _And then he shot away, following Lucile.

The trip back was just as arduous as the first, but they were able to cut the time by at least half. Zack didn't know how long they had been in the city, there was no way of peering to the outside world to even distinguish if it was dark or not. He guessed at least half a day, although there was no way to be sure, the city was like a tomb, and he would relish the great outdoors, assuming he would get to experience them again.

Talk between Zack and Lucile was kept to a minimum, their spirits and their mood downtrodden. Lucile asked twice if he wanted to set up camp and rest, but he declined. He couldn't sleep even if he tried, and while he did feel fatigue, it was like a distant pull, something he was able to push away and forget about. He didn't really feel anything at the moment except anguish and sorrow, shrouding his usually upbeat demeanour. Even so, Lucile insisted on the second attempt, telling him that he'd run his body into the ground if he didn't give it respite. His eyes were dark with heavy bags under his lids, his eyes slightly glassy and red. But still he refused, and in the end Lucile just gave up. She had top hope that in the end, he would succumb to his body's needs.

But it all didn't go as well as planned, and misfortune reared its ugly head once more. Nearing the door that would lead to the way to Zenebatos, another rumble shook the city. Spiralling up towards the ceiling was the sapphire serpent, glowering at them with its one good eye.

"Oh shit" Lucile muttered fretfully. "What do we do now?" She glanced around for possible options, but it seemed they would have to fight it again. Considering the state of her body, she didn't think she could even summon the energy required to transform let alone combat such a formidable foe. To go head to head with the enraged beast would be suicide.

"Lucile" Zack said sharply, drawing her attention. He looked off behind him, towards one of the teleport circles. She looked at him expectantly. "Get ready to run."

* * *

**Note: **Another good chapter up, with quite a bit more action. And yay, our Rose hasn't died . I had much more planned originally for this chapter, but decided it would be too long and it would be better to break it up into two separate chapters. In any event, I hope you enjoyed it and next chapter all (well, some anyway) mysteries shall be revealed!


	45. Chapter 45

**Chapter 45**

By late the following day, after traversing a good portion of the seemingly endless desert, Rose was in clear view of the only human life form that inhabited the desolate barrens. The winds met her well before she was anywhere near the town however, and she could pick up the scent that they carried. She detected both death and destruction, something which through her own experiences she could always feel. It put her on edge.

And right she had been. Standing on the rocky ledge, green portal sphere blinking in the center, she saw a very different Ulara than the one she last saw before she left. The large oasis town that had prospered with unimaginable magnificence given the dead surroundings was covered in a thick layer of dark smoke. Despite the large distance that separated her from the spring city, she could distinguish the desecration that had befallen the town.

_The attack is a recent one. _The burgundy colour of the sky and the damp winds suggested the battle was over, but she couldn't be sure. Drawing her rapier, she walked on to the green circle, hoping the teleporter still worked. As it turned out it did, her body becoming encased in a green orb and being shot towards the town with an all too familiar sensation rising in her stomach.

Dropping oh her feet with an almost silent thud, her eyes went to work at once, scanning her immediate surroundings, ready to detect even the slightest hint of danger. As she had first suspected, the danger had well since past, but the aftermath that greeted her made her cringe. Now that she was up close, she could even smell the decay, what were once lush and green turned to char black, and the delicate walkways and subsequent buildings and houses had been cracked and damaged, in some cases demolished. A large fire had swept across the spring town, and what wasn't burned was crushed by other methods and devices. Rose couldn't imagine what brought on this devastation, but had a good idea who was the cause of it.

"Rose! Rose!'" a voice squealed from within the town. One of the Wingly denizens flew towards her, her face wrought with panic grief. Her typical platinum hair and white face was darkened with smudges from the flaking ash that descended upon them like rain, her long white and blue dress ripped and torn. "You made it! Thank god!"

Rose's eyebrow raised notch. _They were expecting me. _

"Please follow me, the rest are waiting" she urged with alarm. Rose held of the barrage of questions she wanted to ask, deciding it would be more wise to question Charlie, assuming she was still alive. Rose agreed and followed the Wingly deeper into the town.

As she walked briskly towards the congregation of Winglies in the center of the wrecked city, her heart sank. Houses had been pillaged while the near by flora and ornaments of times long since passed defiled. In essence, it looked like a bomb had gone off right in the middle of town.

The Wingly led her into the northern part of town, which once branched off towards Charlie's house, which now stands in ruins. On the immediate left were a bed of plants, once vibrant now shriveled into small black limbs, their former beauty charred. The small band of Winglies were huddled together, muttering amongst themselves. There appeared to be over a dozen of them, but couldn't be any more then two, their conditions no better, and in other cases worse than the Wingly who led Rose there.

Out of the small congestion came a face, really the only face, Rose could recognize. It was Charlie Frahma. Her face, which was usually rich and full of a cheeriness Rose was never able to understand was replaced by one of grief, sorrow and uncertainty. Deep lines creased her usually unmarred face, making her look old and ragged, her eyes clouded with deep hurt and regret.

"Rosie dear, thank god we were able to get you here" she spoke softly, although the usual optimism and playfulness was absent. Rose could hardly blame her.

"So you were responsible for my nice trip here" Rose said dryly. She nodded.

"As you know we usually do not involve ourselves directly in your affairs, but we need you now Rosie." She paused, as if unsure how to continue. "Melbu came here a few days ago, destroying our humble home, killing many others in the process." Her voice was haggard, like act of speaking was almost too much to do. Rose simply assumed it to be fatigue.

"He has marched on into Mayfil, ready to assemble an army big enough to wipe out all Endiness. You need to stop him Rosie, and only you can."

"How were you able to teleport me over such a vast distance? Surely that was out of your power?" Charlie smiled, a sad smile if there ever was one but it was a genuine one.

"There was a time long ago where such an act was of the norm. The power of the Winglies are all linked together, and as Melbu's continues to bolster, so does our own. At this rate, it won't be long until he regains full strength. And if that happens, I can't see anyone able to stop him. Even amongst the Winglies in their prime, he was a prodigy and held unparalleled power. That is why we got you here, so we can take you straight to Mayfil." Rose looked at her with a mixture of awe and amazement. Charlie seemed to be able to read Rose's thoughts.

"Yet even so, the act of getting you from Aglis to here takes a considerable amount out of an old bat like me, dear." She coughed weakly, then signaled over a couple of near by Winglies to her side. They moved her to the near by debris, a garden bed as it once was, and she sat down, folding her arms across her torn pink and white silk dress.

_She's not just tired, she's ill _Rose realized with concern. _Perhaps fatally so. _"I'd like to know exactly what happened" Rose asked.

"Well there isn't really all too much to tell dear. This scene really speaks for itself. Melbu and a small army of soldiers came to our small home and asked for our allegiance. We refused of course, and our home's destruction was the result. He launched a merciless assault, burning and plundering everything…" she trailed off momentarily. "Then he left, leaving us to hear the echoes of his malevolent laughter."

Rose shook her head sourly. He left them for dead, knowing they wouldn't survive long without their town, not in this unforgiving desert. "So we did what we could, we teleported you as close as we could, in hopes to send you on your way."

"But Mayfil is even further. Could you really send me there?" Rose asked doubtfully.

"No, not by ourselves" Charlie admitted. "However, under this city, lies a small labyrinth where Melbu carried out his initial experiments. It's underground, and hasn't been used for many ages, but in it had a teleport device that was used to magnify our power, making instant travel across our major cities quick and effortless."

Rose looked shocked, and for a person who considered herself very knowledgeable when it came to Wingly lore, was surprised at this unknown revelation. "So with any luck, we can use that to grant you direct access to Mayfil."

Rose nodded in understanding. "Can it take me to other major cities?" Rose questioned. Charlie appeared taken aback by the question.

"Why... yes dear, it isn't set on any one way course. Why?"

Rose folded her arms and almost scowled. "I made a promise to meet up with my friends in Zenebatos. There is a chance they may not be alive, however if they are they'll need me."

Charlie looked at her, studying her intently, before letting out a long and rueful sigh.

"Rosie… I don't know if it's wise to take any detours. Every second wasted is a second Melbu grows stronger. Are you prepared to take that kind of chance?"

It was Rose's turn to stare, eyeing her friend closely. Great pain surfaced in her eyes as she reflected all the people she had abandoned and killed in the past. She nodded emphatically.

"Yes, I believe it is a risk I will take. It may only be a small chance that they are waiting for me, but I cannot abandon them. I've done too much of that in my long and drawn out life." Charlie smiled, seemingly pleased with her response. A small bit of her former happiness seemed to return.

"You've grown up a little it seems Rosie" she commented, and then stood up off the broken remains, although not without a grunt of effort. "I think it's time I lead you to what lies beneath." Another small smile flickered across her face as her wings manifested, keeping her aloft. "Try to keep up Rosie."

* * *

"Made it!" Zack gasped as he felt control come back to his body. He looked behind to see Lucile had followed in suit, the small ball used to shoot them across the world disappearing, giving back Lucile her form.

"But into what?" Lucile wondered skeptically, noting the small dark room they now stood in. Only the teleport device in the middle from which they came was anything really worth noting, however once they gout outside… she knew it'd be an entirely different story.

"But that was close" Zack sighed, sitting down a moment to catch his breath. They had run from the dragon, run as fast as their legs would allow, zipping through the last few teleporters. The door that was blocked to them at first had been opened; he thanked the powers that be for that small miracle, because if they weren't… he didn't know what he would do. But what still plagued his mind like a fever you just couldn't shake off was the question of why Wen gave him back his spirit. It wasn't contaminated or tainted in anyway, at least as best he could tell. He thought he'd be able to feel if it was, and then doubted you could pollute a Dragon Spirit come to that, but one just never knew. He still held no illusions about him however, he had an interior motive he was sure, ones that would not bode well for them when the time came.

"Well we made it in any event" Lucile said, breaking him away from his thoughts. Zack nodded and stood up, feeling a little uneasy. For the second time they were alone in uncharted enemy territory, without a guide to steer them.

"Alright, lets go" he said with a strong hint of nerves, and together they traveled into the Law City Zenebatos.

It was nothing like Aglis in the least, and again they were stunned into a silent awe. Unlike the previous Wingly city, this one was entirely above water and outdoors, no constraints on that token, and almost looked like to float. It broke into several levels, seemingly each having specific sectors, patrolled by small robots that almost looked like some sort of comic ghosts, small round body, thins arms and a pointed head. In front of them however loomed a large dome like structure that set itself apart from town. It looked like it was made of iron, although both Zack and Lucile knew that in reality it would be made of something far more sophisticated. Below them an eerie moss coloured mist lingered, masking what lies beneath.

"Look, up there" Lucile said, pointing to the top of the teleporter room. It acted as some kind of roof and on it was a small shining blue obelisk. "Maybe that has something that can help us… or teleport us" Lucile muttered unhappily. Zack walked to the side of the room, a small teleport sphere was there that granted them passage to the top of the small room, and he walked up to it and examined it. The obelisk was only a big as he was, lines of foreign glyphs he thought represented the Wingly language was engraved upon it.

_Here goes _he thought and pressed his hand on it. A small patrol robot came flying towards them on a small round disk, which seemed to keep them hovering, and parked right in front of him, screeching in an automated voice: "THE LAW PROHIBITS HUMANS FROM GOING TO THE SIGNET SPHERE." Zack was stunned, the voice loud enough to make his ears ring.

"What the hell!?"

"THE LAW PROHIBITS HUMANS FROM GOING TO THE SIGNET SPHERE" it repeated.

"Okay, okay just shut up!" Zack howled, backing off and rubbing his ears. He moved back down to Lucile, who looked at him in confusion.

"What was that about?"

"Hell if I know" Zack replied irritably. "What the hell is it with those things?"

"Rose did say something about it being a city ran by strict laws and administrations, enforced by robots." Zack groaned. "I guess that's why it's called the law city" she finished.

"Well, I guess we have to continue through the city" Zack said unhappily. "I just hope we don't have to deal with any more of them."

Walking eastward the only other way into the city, to Zack's chagrin, another small robot hovered behind an olive metal counter. The small walkway (also olive) broke off, leaving a large circular gap, where similar platforms continued into different directions. How to access those platforms was still a mystery to them though.

"Now what?" Zack asked, confused. Lucile looked at the idle robot, seemingly motionless.

"Ask that?" she suggested, pointing towards the mechanical humanoid. Zack frowned, but walked towards it with a shaken anticipation.

"Hey, how do we get across?" he asked it. It didn't respond, only stood still, refusing to acknowledge. "Hey, tin-can, talk to me" Zack invoked with irritation. No response. "Bah, screw it." He walked towards the end of the path, looking across to the other areas, a particularly large factory like building taking his attention. _What is this place? _Ominous mountains and yellow mists loomed below.

Suddenly the robot sprang to life, moving in front of them.

"WARNING, WARNING, UNDER MARTIAL LAW, ALL HUMANS ARE PROHIBITED TO ENTER THE CITY, NO EXCEPTIONS. PLEASE TURN BACK."

Zack took a step back, bringing his hands up as it to try and halt the booming voice of the android. After a few seconds it repeated the message, its automated voice piercing and painful to the ear.

WARNING, WARNING… NRRRRRRGGGGG…" and that was as far as it got the third time before Zack drew his spear and cut the machine in half. It clanked with a thud, small spark of electricity sprinkling.

"Much better" he said, sighing. He didn't get much time to rejoice however, as three, thinner, purple robots descended to their location, glancing at the destroyed robot, then at them.

"VIOLENCE WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. ALL OFFENDERS WILL BE PROSECUTED."

Before they could even begin to think, let alone act, Zack and Lucile felt themselves be lifted into mid air, and then encased in a green orb, much like as if they were teleporting. They were then shot towards the bottom of the city, where when they regained control of their body's, they would find themselves locked in the Zenebatos prison.

* * *

Rose stood before a sight she still wasn't able to entirely believe. They had travelled a small ways out of town, into the everlasting bed of desert, and when Charlie had halted them to a stop, she and the half a dozen or so Winglies that followed all formed two lined, several feet apart. Lifting their hands up and chanting in unison, small bright glyphs appeared on the sand, and then they blinked away, the sand between them eroding until a rectangular shaped openness replaced it.

After the initial astonishment wore off, Rose spied steps that led down into blackness, presumably into the heart of the cavern. Her attention was drawn away from the passage by the soft and painful moan of Charlie, who fell to her knees, exhausted.

"Are you alright?" Rose asked walking towards her and kneeling.

"I'm fine honey, just fine" she replied, but Rose was once again struck with that knowing sensation that her friend was very sick. She could see it in Charlie's eyes, hear it in her drawn out breaths and pain repressed voice. Most of all though Rose could see it in her feeble movements

"Be careful down there, I've only been in there three times, and they were far and between. What lays there or perhaps more importantly, what remains stable, I know not."

"I'll keep that in mind" Rose murmured, moving to her feet.

"Well, let's continue." Rose looked at her doubtfully.

"You're coming?"

Charlie blinked, as if the answer and reason was all too obvious. "Of course. The few times I ventured in there, Melbu had several wards up to keep out insiders, so you'll need us to rid of such magic if it's still active."

"I think it'd be better if you remained behind" Rose defied. Charlie shook her head with a stubbornness she didn't usually show. Despite the majority of the Wingly race, arrogance, power abuse and cruelty were not traits found in the very passive Charlie. In fact, she was one of the most placid people Rose knew, humans included.

"Very well" Rose surrendered. "But stay behind me, and if any trouble permits itself, flee immediately."

"Don't worry about us Rosie, we'll be fine." Rose shrugged indifferently and walked towards the start of the stairs. She couldn't see much past the first few steps, it was pitch black.

"How do we navigate our way through the darkness?" Rose asked. Charlie moved forward, muttering something and then throwing one arm into the air. A small flicker of flame danced brightly around the palm of her hand, before it shot off, zipping through the darkness. Small beacons of flame light up, one by one, illuminating the way, and when the nearest beacon (braziers Rose had identified), the way was clear.

"See? Even this old woman has her uses" Charlie commented in good humor. Rose couldn't help but crack a narrow smile.

"Don't overdo it, wouldn't want to tire ourselves out too much now" the dark warrior rebutted. The time she had spent with Zack's unwavering humor had indeed rubbed off on her, but it didn't irk her as much as she had expected.

"When you're as old as me you'll understand!" Charlie said, taking on her usual shrewdness. Rose had already descended the first couple of steps, before she turned her head and replied "What are you talking about? I _am _as old as you" and continued her descent. Charlie merely laughed and followed.

* * *

"What the hell is this!?" Zack cried in frustration. They had spent more than an hour in what could only be described as some sort of detainment center. A small circular room with more Wingly murals and magic ether plastered across the chrome coloured walls that stretched upwards for many feet. The walls were made of a solid material he had never come across, and all attempts to breach them (With and without weapons) proved futile. They couldn't even make a scratch or small dent, and to make matters worse there seemed to be some sort of anti magic field in place, preventing them from transforming.

"Now what?" he asked, looking at Lucile who had taken a seat beside him. The prison had been well warded both magically and physically it seemed, and it appeared only outside interferences would provide them an exit.

"They'll have to deal with us sooner or later, I doubt we'll just wait here and rot."

Zack glanced around the floor, looking to find any contradictory bones or bits of flesh and was relieved to find none. It was as clean as it was fortified. With a grunt, Zack slid down the wall and hunkered with Lucile. For a long moment there was only silence.

"Do you think she's alright?" Zack asked with contained emotion. Lucile tilted her head upwards a little.

"I think we'd know if she was gone" Lucile replied. It wasn't the straight answer Zack was looking for, but she couldn't lie to him either. Zack nodded.

"I think she's okay. Somewhere out there, she's struggling, just as we are." A sour expression grafted itself across Zack's face.

"You make your belief sound like such bad news" she spoke softly.

"That's because unlike us, she has to struggle alone." He paused a moment before finishing. "Again."

"You should get some sleep. I'll keep watch" the White Silver Dragoon Knight offered, but Zack declined. Sleep was something he would not find properly until he either found out about Rose's existence (or lack of), or died finding out.

* * *

Rose, Charlie and the small handful of Winglies that followed entered a large circular room that was three parts lit by the nearby beacons, but still one part black. It was as large as a football field, and had the girth to match it. For an underground laboratory, for that's what it essentially was, it was certainly an impressive one, both in size and the assortment of objects Rose could make out, among them further down was peculiar mirror, rectangular in shape, and on the other side, towards the eastern part of the dome, rested a very large stone like statue that stretched many feet into the air, and in the half darkness, Rose couldn't quite make out what it was supposed to be.

"It actually used to stretch out into many more rooms, but they have since been collapsed" Charlie explained. "But what we need it just at the end of the room." It struck Rose weird on why Charlie would want to follow, if indeed it was this simple. No Wingly devices that needed decoding or any other problems seemed to stand in front of her, and for the first time Rose wondered if there was something her age old friend wasn't telling her about.

Slowly they made their way to the end of the room where several broken pillars and giant test tubes amongst other unidentifiable items surrounded them. Rose couldn't even begin to imagine what atrocities were carried out when a lab like this was active.

Rose was halted half way across when her Dragoon Spirit resonated, beams of purple light shining around her. She moaned softly, the radiance almost burning, and when she went into her satchel and pulled it out, lit the entire underground cavern for one brief moment, before the light faded entirely.

Rose looked around nervously, her intuition biting as hard as ever.

"Is there anything you haven't told me about this place?" Rose asked sharply. The feeling of dread only grew with each second, and she began to shift uneasily.

Charlie glanced and the giant statue, it's alien head curving back as if it had huge horns, it's massive arms and claws resting below it ominously on its crouched legs. "That is the remnants of a test subject." Charlie murmured, pointing to the mummified creature. Rose squinted at it with her eyes, and then the realization (which should have hit home sooner) that the statue was actually a virage hit her like a truck.

Is it… alive?" Rose asked, her throat now as dry as the desert above them.

"… It was never properly killed. But it was forced into a dormant state."

Rose eyed the creature intensely, the feeling of hate, malice and anger bubbled around the virage like a bad aura. Soon its presence was all but ignorable.

"Therein lays our second problem" Rose said, keeping her calm demeanor, although internally panic was rearing its ugly head. "It's not going to be dormant much longer." The stone shell that encased the virage began to crack and split, revealing the ebon skin below. Charlie and the other Winglies could only look on with horror.

"Charlie!" Rose yelled, snapping her out of her horror paralysis. "Get the rest of the Winglies and run to the surface."

"But what will you do Rosie?" she asked.

"Stay here and kill it of course." Charlie shook her head.

"No, you can't risk yourself over this. Come here, I can teleport you out of here, let us deal with it." It was Rose's turn to show her stubbornness, and she let out an impatient sigh.

"This is no time for this, it has to be killed and you are in no position to do it. Just run to the surface and prepare to evacuate, and if I'm not out in ten minutes… assume you're going to be the next target."

Charlie looked at Rose with a glace of helplessness and sorrow, before giving a small nod. Meanwhile, the virage has shed the stone around it, the debris sitting at its massive feet like no more than small drops of water.

"I wish I could do more" she whispered, and then signaled the rest of the Winglies to follow her out of the cave. The virage, its many eyes gleaming, screeched loudly.

"Oh no, your battle is with me" Rose said, transforming into a dragoon. The room was big, but probably not big enough to house the battle that was about to come. In all likelihood, the room would end up caving in, trapping both of them. Yet if she took the battle outside, it would endanger the other Winglies as well.

Rose had no more time to ponder. The virage had made its move.

* * *

**Note: **Another long update, which I apologize for. University and a nasty sickness impeded my progress so the hasty submission I had planned fell askew (. On that note however, I'm pretty happy with how the chapter came out, especially considering Zenebatos was a pain in the ass to write about. Hope you guys enjoy it .

-Michael.


	46. Chapter 46

**Chapter 46**

With a screech, the virage shot forth, large hand with many inch long claws preceding it in an attempt to skewer its opponent, better verified as Rose. Fortunately the virage's movements appeared sluggish and unbalanced, even taking into to account the massive frame of the beast, and as a result Rose was able to maneuver around the strike. Now in mid flight, Rose began to move away from it with deliberate slowness, her wings moving back and forth in their usual cycle. _Years of confinement have dulled its senses and movements, at least for now. I'll have to use that to my advantage _Rose noted mentally.

The virage roared with frustration, noticing its prey is still nimbly flying above it. Again it lashed out its giant hand, shooting upwards towards her. Once more she moved around the outstretched arm, and with a quiet thump, the claws and hand jammed in the sandy roof of the underground laboratory. For a fretful moment, as the enraged beast thrashed about trying to pry its hand free, Rose thought the roof, and the consequent sand above them would fall down upon them, burying them in a sandy tomb.

Snapping back to reality, Rose darted forward, intending to take advantage of the momentary distraction. When you're one out with monster that holds the power that can contend with dragons, the chances of winning were slim to none at best, and any advantage, dangerous or not, had to be taken. She flew across the back flank of the virage and extended her sword in a quick horizontal slash. She sword stuck in and pulled the creatures bronze flesh as she glided forward, and when the virage cried in pain and anger, she pulled out her rapier and shot away, avoiding the virage's free hand the swiped blindly behind it in hopes to swat Rose away. Blood oozed out of the large gash that started at its spine and ended at its right side, enraging further. This time it did managed to remove its trapped hand, the sandy ceiling vibrating as a result, although it did not crumble.

Rose cursed softly, unhappy with the result of her strike. The virage's innate skin hardiness, seemingly improved over the duration of its stone imprisonment, negated what would otherwise be a debilitating blow. She would be lucky to have penetrated any more than two layers of skin. The virage's impressive head turned to her, its many small eyes watching her carefully. It seemingly abandoned its reckless offence in favour for a more calculated standoff, as if waiting for Rose to make the next move.

A flurry of ancient memories began to flood her mind, creating strong a feeling of nostalgia. It was a sensation that always assaulted her when she faced a virage or a dragon or anything else that was born in the time of the Dragon Campaign. Only this time, in a wingly lab under a forgotten wingly city, the feeling sensation was a little stronger, a little sharper. She could almost feel her old friend's presence, like they were all once again a whole, a team of seven Dragoon Knights that even Melbu Frahma had come to fear. The momentary trance empowered Rose with a confidence she wouldn't otherwise have had, and slowly she raise her blade until it was level with her shoulder, pointing directly at the virage.

The virage growled a low, ghastly snarl, then let out another roar, as if it knew Rose's unspoken challenge, and accepted it. Accepted the final battle between dragon and virage in what would decide the war between the two beings that has spanned over the good portion of eleven thousand years.

Rose attacked first, now no longer conscious of the hazardous equipment or the barely stable ceiling that could collapse upon them at any moment. All that was in her line of vision was one thing: Her target.

A small ball of dark matter manifested in her hand and grew to the size of large orange or apple, and she sent it hurling towards the giant body of the virage. The virage swatted the ball away with its hand, as if it was no more than a tennis ball. Between its many eyes lied a small green orb, above its maw that held many sharp teeth. It growled low again and the green circle began to light up, before it shot a thin light beam towards its enemy.

Rose had only a split second to react, the beam was that quick, and the only thing she could do was bring her sword up in front of her where she estimated the small pillar of beam would connect and turn her sword so the face of the blade was facing towards the beam. It connected directly with her sword, and she had to put all her strength into it to stop it from pushing her weapon aside and piercing her body. The pressure was immense, and to her horror she found the ray was continuous, and it pressed her blade against her chest and abdomen. She cried and she tried to budge, but the energy was too colossal, and it pinned her into a perpetual defensive stance she was unable to break out of. Slowly it actually began to push her back, and despite all the extra strength and endurance her Dragoon powers granted her, it did nothing against the small cylinder of pure energy that threatened to burn through her sword and her body that laid behind it. Screaming at the top of her lungs, she managed to pivot her blade so the edge of her sword face the pillar of energy, and as a result when it contacted with her sword it split off into two small beams on either side of her sword that shot around her, almost like an un-joined triangle. Now free of the pressure that prevented her from moving, she maneuvered towards the floor, moving away from the beam of bright energy. Once her sword had been removed, it once again joined into one solid pillar, and as she glided south, the beam followed her at an alarming speed.

_Shit! _She moved to the side spinning in mid air with her uncanny grace and agility, banking around the small beam, watching it crash and destroy other unidentifiable devices and objects.

_If I'm not careful it may end up destroying the teleporter I need to get out of here! _Rose thought furiously. _Not to mention the roof above that still threatens to give way. _Glancing around quickly, she had only one option, although she didn't much like it. Looking behind her to see where and what the virage was doing (It was walking slowly towards her, still emitting the one beam of energy) she accelerated as hard as she could back through the entry and up the flight of stairs, all the while spiraling around the small beam. Yet as dexterous as Rose may have been, she couldn't avoid the small clips of brief contact, which although largely glanced off her armor, managed to cause small flesh wounds on her leg and back, where she had been hit with too much of the pure energy and it had melted through her armor. After that she had no doubt the pillar of energy could with no problem at all lance through her armor as if it was nothing more than paper. Grunting, she sped up the last flight of stairs, and head a rumble and a crash from behind her where the passage narrowed, wedging in the head and top half of the virage's body.

It roared, thrashing about as best it could, but as big and powerful as the limbs were, it could do nothing to lodge the giant being out of its wedged position. Rose took the chance to break, shooting out into the open desert where the sun had sunk below the horizon. Gliding high in the air, she took a deep breath to calm her nerves, the constant bellow of the virage echoing from below.

_Out here I have much more room to move around. Another advantage I can utilize. _

"Rosie, are you alright!?"

Rose whipped her head around towards the not so distant town to see Charlie and a few winglies moving towards her. Her eyes flashed dangerously.

"Stay away damn it!" she cried. "The battle isn't over yet! If you're out here when the virage comes out you'll be slaughtered! Charlie and the four other winglies halted. Slowly they began to move back from where they came, visibly frightened.

Rose's eyes scanned the sandy barren, waiting for the slightest hint of movement from her underground foe. As it turned out her concentration was not required, a small quake began to shake the desert bed, and not long after a huge head, then body then legs sprouted out from a large hole made by the virage. It screamed triumphantly, now free, and as it spotted Rose it began to charge.

As high as Rose was, she was still only up to the virage's shoulder, and it quickly extended its arm as a quick jab. She moved to the side of the arm, gave it a quick stab with her own blade (which seemed to deter it little) and the massive beast followed up with a thrust of its open mouth, teeth bearing and ready to trap Rose under its needle like sharpness. The move caught Rose off guard and she able to evade it, but only by a few inches. The sound of the clenching teeth nearly defended her as the angled yet large jaw caught nothing but air. Now, face to face, Rose could see its many eyes watching her closely, snarling all the while. Rose glided just over the top of its head and cried "Great flames of black destruction, I summon thee!" She pressed her hand against the top of its head, and slowly a boil of what appeared to be dark ink began to bubble. As Rose made a hasty retreat to what she hoped was safety, the black bubbling combusted into a black firestorm, the midnight pyres engulfing the head, back and legs of the virage. As Rose watched the beast thrash around, writing in pain, the dark flames reminded her of the destruction she had brought with the same spell to the town of Neet.

Growling, the monster turned to Rose, still in a black blaze. The virage appeared to no longer feel the cloak of darkness that covered it and once again dashed towards a somewhat fatigued Rose.

_Didn't think it would be that easy. _She readied herself for another round. Only this time it stopped a few meters short from her, eyeing her closely. Another standoff.

_Fine if you won't move then I will. _A shrill shriek rung throughout the area, deafening Rose and halting any further actions she had in mind. It was like a siren that went off for a few seconds, took an interval then went off again in constant succession. Rose tried to cover her ears, but it was to no avail. The close proximity made it impossible to block out the wail. She closed her eyes, her ears ringing, all the while emitting a painful buzz that slowly crept into her head and brain, sitting there like a headache that wouldn't go away. From then it seemed to assault her whole body, her muscles tensed and retracted, it throbbed down her back made and stung her nerves and made her stomach flip upside down. It was one of the worst noises she had ever heard, and when it slowly died down (it went to a low hum before it stopped completely), it seemed to stick in her head like a song you just couldn't forget long after the cry had ceased.

When she uncovered her ears and opened her eyes, she almost lost her balance, unable to stay aloft. Her eyes had been rattled by the sound as well, her eyes unadjusted and blurred. Anything she would have done after that she didn't know, all she felt was the constricting of her body as one massive hand wrapped around her body. The high pitched scream had done enough, disorientating her long enough for the virage to take advantage.

Rose gasped as the long tendril like fingers squeeze the air out of her lungs. The Virage leered at its caught prey, and clenched its hand even tighter. Rose cried out once more, the heat from the still burning flames smothering her as much as the virage's hand was. The smell of rancid burning flesh from the creature filled her nostrils, and if not for the constriction, she thought she could damn near vomit.

And harder still it squeezed, harder and harder until her previously injured ribs cracked, creating a shockwave effect on her whole body. She screamed in agony, her busted ribs pressing against her internal organs, threatening to puncture and create further injury. To her relief, the virage didn't apply any more pressure, although what came next wasn't any better. It threw Rose at the ground like a ball, and as she sailed towards the sandy bottom, she felt powerless to stop her eventual collision. Her Wings which had also been crushed wouldn't respond and her body still ached with a pain that rendered her body useless. She hit the sand with a sickening thump, rolling a few times before coming to a complete stop.

Rose was beyond pain now. Her vision darkened, threatening to give way entirely. She couldn't move her body, it felt broken in every sense, but still she had the horror of watching the virage approach her, wanting to play with its victim some more. She only closed her eyes and prayed her death would be quick.

_Whack!_

Another impact, this time the virage drove its foot into Rose, kicking her across the sandy desert like a football. She skidded across many yards before stopping, blood running freely from her mouth. She could no longer feel pain, only a tingling numbness and the sense of her impending doom that shrouded all other. She closed her eyes, expecting it to be for the last time. She waited… and waited… and waited. Nothing.

She opened her eyes (Which in itself was a tremendous effort) and to her surprise found the Virage suspended. Her vision was still blurred; she could only make out faint silhouettes with minimal detail, but she saw enough to know that something had interfered. Focusing harder, she could make out vague figures around the virage, hovering and shouting. The virage, its arm and legs forced together by some spell or another, was thrashing tirelessly.

_They must be winglies _Rose thought, although the new found knowledge had a distant, mellowing effect as opposed to the clarifying urgency she thought it ought to give her.

_Even if it is spellbound they can't keep it up for long. And I'm in no position to take advantage _But even so, her spirit and will was very much intact, even if nothing else was. She tried to move. At first only her fingertips and toes responded, all else seemed to lose function. Her first thought was that perhaps her injuries have left her permanently paralyzed, in which case she'd choose death. But soon her muscles in her arms and thighs allowed slight movement, which fueled her almost extinguished hope. _I can do this._

She tried propping herself up on her forearms, but as her torso moved, a wave of pain so sudden and intense struck her that she nearly lost consciousness once more. Fresh blood invaded her lungs, which she expelled with a series of raspy coughs. When the fit subsided, she laid there, beaten both physically and now mentally.

"Rose!"

The voice sounded distant to her ears, like it was coming from some divine entity. It brought some lucidity back into the dream like stupor she had fallen into, but she couldn't move her head to turn into the direction it was coming from.

"Rosie honey I'm coming!"

This time she didn't need to locate the voice. She knew it by sound alone, it was Charlie Frahma. She darted towards her fallen ally, worry wrought all over her face.

"Rosie, I'm here, can you talk?"

She tried, but all she succeeded in doing was coughing up more blood. Charlie glanced behind her, six winglies formed a small circle around the virage, casting the necessary incantation to upkeep the binding spell they had on it. But even with the six of them, the virage's reckless flailing drew away the remaining reservoirs of energy, which in turned slowly began to weaken the spell.

"Listen Rose" Charlie began. "I'm going to try and heal you okay?" Rose's eyes slowly opened, her ice blue eyes meeting hers. Charlie pressed two hands on the front of her abdomen, and then began to chant inaudibly.

A white light slowly enveloped Rose, brining on a sobering and curative effect. She could feel the torn tendons form anew and the broken bones re-align. The spell went on for several minutes, each minute putting more strain on the already burdened Charlie, and by the third minute, her breathing was so drawn out it was almost deafening and sweat ran freely of her brow and on to Rose.

"Charlie, we can't hold out much longer!" one of the winglies screamed as the virage's thrashing intensified, as if it could sense their losing struggle.

Charlie ignored it and focused on the spell, which slowly began to ebb away at her life force. Rose could sense this, and she quickly grasped Charlie's forearm with her own hand, gaining her attention.

"That's enough" Rose said in a dry voice. "You can't handle the strain any longer." Before Charlie could protest, Rose sat up, and while a spike of pain still greeted her, it was nothing she couldn't handle.

"Rose, it's only a quick fix. It'll restore some mobility, but your injuries are still serious. I couldn't completely heal the tissue or organ damage, and I could only re-align the bones, not mend them. If you put too much stress or you cop another hit, you'll be done for."

Rose nodded, getting to her feet. "It's fine. I'm going to end this with one spell" Rose assured. She expanded her now fixed wings, and began to ascend.

"Keep it there for a little longer!' Rose barked, although she had her doubts if they could. The six winglies were drenched in sweat and looked dead on their feet, or wings, rather. How they are even now keeping the creature at bay was a mystery to her.

Reaching the desired height, she raised her sword to a perpendicular angle. "Oh black dragon, as dark as the night. Come before me, and vanquish my foe." She then slashed her sword so it pointed to the ground, where below her, her shadow began to change.

Initially twisting into a black oval, it spanned out and began to take a shape of its own. The act of calling forth the dragon took its toll, especially on her battle worn body, but her determination in the end prevailed. The shadow below her, which was no longer her own, morphed into a thin body with wings and a long tail, before it literally shot out of the shadow and manifested into reality. The darkness dragon, built like a serpent with wings, hovered beside Rose, its long neck and head craning slightly to glare at the virage, who has stopped battling its imprisonment momentarily to give the dragon its attention.

"When I say scatter, head for cover!' Rose yelled to the six winglies. The virage appeared to sense the severity of its situation, and began struggling once more with renewed efforts.

"Now" Rose said softly to the dragon, and it bowed its head respectively before the cannon mounted under its belly began to absorb the necessary energy to fire.

"Scatter!" Rose ordered, and the winglies abandoned their posts and flew in every direction. Although the virage had a few second gap where it could escape, if it was quick enough, amongst all the confusion it appeared unaware. By the time it was aware that it was no longer bound, the darkness dragon had already fired its dark beam of energy, which swallowed the virage immediately.

_Lucky we're not facing the direction of the town _Rose thought as the bean slowly dispersed. To her surprise, the virage wasn't completely obliterated. It still kept some of its form, although even that was slowly eroding away to the dark conflagration. It let out small grunts of pain, and fell to the floor, where it would wait for a death that was not swift enough to not be painful. Rose let out a sigh, then descended to the sandy floor herself.

As soon as she was on solid ground, the price she had to pay hit her immediately. She fell to one knee, completely exhausted, and shifted back into her human form in hopes to levitate some of the pressure. She turned her head to look at the virage, which was now surrounded by a black cloud, which once more set off the smell of acrid burnt flesh. She turned her back to it, presuming it dead (a decision she would soon regret) and made her way slowly towards the sitting Charlie, who herself was trying to regain her own vigor. When she saw Rose approach she stood up, extending her hand to hail her.

But before they could celebrate they're well earned victory, the virage, still not quite dead yet, eyed them with hate and contempt. Gathering the last of its resources, it sighted the back of Rose, and the small green or on its head began to gleam.

Rose was only a few feet away from Charlie when the hair on the back of her neck stood up and her blood chilled. She stopped walking and turned her head behind her, eyeing the virage closely. Something was wrong and Rose knew it, but before she could ponder on it too long, the reason made itself apparent in the form of another thin, light beam. If Rose hadn't been alert and still had her back to her fallen foe, Rose had the knowledge that she would have had no time to react, and subsequently it would have hit her, in all probability killing her. But it was not to be, and Rose jumped to the side, avoiding the narrow pillar of dangerous light. But that didn't mean her impotence would go unpunished. The price for ending the fight prematurely and simply assuming her enemy dead without first inspecting to make sure it was so was to be paid for by another: Charlie Frahma.

Charlie didn't have the wherewithal to notice nor the energy to move even if she did, and consequently the beam struck her in the center of the chest, entering one end, exiting the other.

"No!" Rose screamed, and dashed towards her friend. By the time she got to her the attack had been finished, the beam disappearing. But even so, the virage faded into death knowing one thing: It would take one of them with it.

Rose caught Charlie before she hit the floor. She was bleeding heavily; both out of her wound and her mouth, and her eyes began to roll to the back of her skull. "Guess I wasn't quick… enough" Charlie said, spluttering.

"Shhh, don't speak. Save your energy" Rose coaxed. Several of the wingly onlookers floated towards them.

"Can you do anything?" Rose asked one of the winglies who was inspecting Charlie's wound.

"We can try." A dozen or so winglies circles around Charlie, trying to mend the wound. Rose had walked back a distance, watching and internally cursing herself. If she had of been more thorough and had absolute certainty the virage was destroyed before she celebrated, this could have been avoided. It was a simple task that had been drilled into her since she started as a Dragoon Knight. Always make sure your enemy is dead, lest you wish a knife in your back as you walk away.

Rose sat on her own for a long period of time, watching the circle of winglies doing all they could to keep Charlie alive. In the distance, the twilight was nearly an end, the darkness ready to spread across the sky.

Three winglies then broke away from the circle and headed in her direction. They looked tired and worn, but it wasn't the physical strain that twisted their faces into melancholy. It was of course, worry for their friend.

"Miss Rose, would you like us to heal you? I know Charlie already did, but we can perform a more thorough procedure" one of the three wingly women asked.

"You'd best spend the time and energy fixing Charlie" Rose replied fatly.

"We've done all we could. What's left of us are really only trying to comfort her, that's all we can do now."

"Will she survive?"

The platinum haired wingly sighed deep. "We're not sure. Our healing is only limited, we can heal basic wounds and breaks, but we cannot breathe life into the dying or dead. We've done all we can."

Rose nodded, looking off. When she said nothing more, they repeated the question and this time Rose agreed. During the process, she had time to reflect on her own thoughts and megrims.

_How many more people have to die? How much more blood of innocents must be spilled before the war that has spanned over eleven thousand years is to be resolved? _Her thoughts then drifted to Zack and Lucile. _I wonder if they're even alive. If not, it's really only me fighting against Melbu and his band of winglies. _She sighed. _Would it be easier if I gave up? _No, she didn't think it would. She couldn't even if that was the best course of action to take (and this one wasn't anyway), and she knew that even if she was the last person on earth facing Melbu and his regime, she would fight until her final breath left her body.

When they had finishing fixing Rose's wounds as best they could, Rose stood up, feeling considerably better.

"We still haven't healed you entirely; your body will still be fragile for a while. Only time can completely mend all wounds, so be careful." Rose nodded, then looked off towards the circle of winglies. They were no longer casting any spells, just talking quietly with each other.

Rose walked into the circle, moving past two winglies and crouched beside the now sitting Charlie who was in the center of the circle.

"How are you?" Rose asked. She was no longer bleeding, and looked in a lot less pain.

"Seen better days" Charlie replied. Rose nodded. "But the bleeding has been stifled, so at least I can stop tasting blood." She let out a wry smile to show the humour, although made little success of it.

"In any event, we have more pressing matters" she began. "We need to get you to the teleporter and send you out of here. You're no good sitting in this place."

"You need to rest. Let the other winglies do it" Rose protested.

"We're all worn out from the battle. Sending you across such a large distance will require all the help we can get. Either that or wait a few days for us to completely recover, but we can't afford to waste that time."

Rose shook her head. "You're lucky to be alive, and there's no guarantee you will be by the time the night is out. You're in no condition to be even moving, let alone spell weaving."

"I have to do this Rose, please. I can still fly, so I won't slow you down." The determination and will in her eyes made it hard for Rose to refuse, despite all she had been through. She turned away. "I can't. You need to stay here and get better."

Charlie stood up, and turned her so that they were once more eye to eye. "Rose, you cannot let one life deter your course to stop Melbu. If I can die knowing that I have helped put you back on the course that may one day bring peace and tranquility back into the world, than I can die happy. Please let me do this."

Rose considered it for a minute, and reluctantly agreed. "Fine." A smile creased Charlie's lips momentarily, before flickering, giving way to the pain that stung her body as she stood up.

"Then let us make haste. We don't have much time to waste."

Charlie rounded up all the winglies she could, and then followed Rose back under into the damaged cavern below. Luckily, despite the virage's beak through in the ceiling near the stairs, it didn't cave in entirely. Now that small beams of light could penetrate below, she could see more clearly the remnants of Melbu's old lab. Mirrors, containers, chains… she could only imagine what they were used for.

Rose made sure to stay close to Charlie, in case anything should happen. It was amazing she was able to walk, let alone keep up with her, but she did so with no complaints.

"It's amazing to think you could tackle a virage like that" Charlie commented as they walk through the giant lab. The teleport device lied at the end of the large open corridor.

"I had help" Rose remarked. "A lot of help." Before Charlie could comment, Rose abruptly changed the subject. "Is there any other surprises I should know about?"

Charlie shook her head. "As far as I know, there is nothing else down here that should cause disturbances." Rose nodded, adding no more to the conversation.

Once they reached the teleporter, which was not too unlike the usual green ones, with the exception it was metal platform under a blue sphere. Small translucent tentacle like arms arched around the perimeter.

"They show the level of power that is currently within the device" Charlie explained. Rose walked around it, examining it closely.

"It looks ancient… are you sure it will still function?" Rose asked skeptically. Charlie shrugged.

"We can only hope."

"It better not explode on me or anything" Rose said, a vivid image of her burning to her death due to an explosion invading her mind. Charlie chuckled.

"Stand in the middle of it, and let us do the rest."

Rose looked at the device, then once more at Charlie. They locked eyes for several moments, although to them it felt like a lifetime. Although it was never said out loud, they both knew and acknowledged one fact: This would be their last meeting, at least in this world. Charlie let out another wan smile, and as Rose turned her back to step on to the blue ethereal platform, she let a single tear slide down her cheek. When she stepped on the teleporter, the other winglies all formed around in a circle around her. As they did, she glanced at Charlie again and mouthed silently: "Thank you." Charlie nodded.

"Take care Rosie dear, and whatever you do, stop the madness my brother intends to bring upon our world."

"I promise" Rose vowed, adding another to the list of many. The winglies, battle tired or not, all began to chant and move in unison, their hands rising and falling like a rehearsed dance or play. Slowly orbs of energy began to form around them and move into the four thin cylinders, filling up with a multitude of colours.

Then Charlie began to chant and move, digging into the last reservoirs of her strength. It added the last kick of energy needed, and as the cylinders neared their beak, a small green orb encased Rose, floating buoyantly.

"Now, give it all you've got" Charlie commanded, and as they all focused as one, they pushed the orb off with all their will, shooting it to the distant town of Zenebatos. Once it was done, most of the winglies fell to one knee, exhausted, while Charlie fell on her side, coughing hysterically. The other winglies converged around her, and when one offered a heal she said "No, my time has come to leave this place." They all looked at her regretfully, but none objected. Rolling on to her back, she coughed out more phlegm (mixed with some blood, her wound had obviously ruptured once more during their incantation), and she subsided, her vision slowly narrowing as she began her transition into the void.

She could no longer even find the strength to talk. Everything was silent except for the sound of her rough breathing, which slowly became more infrequent. Wishing one last time to the gods above to give Rose their luck and strength, she closed her eyes. What she took with her as she exited the world was not Rose any of her friends from Ulara but her brother Melbu, and the memory of his earlier years, before he became the tyrant he is now. Before he ascended to power, which slowly contorted his thoughts and visions, creating the monster that craved destruction. What she took with her in her last thoughts during her last few breaths was her and Meblu, in the secret patch of roses when they were but children, where he kissed her on the cheek and promised he would always protect her. And as she died, the silence around her still not broken, she still managed to die with a smile.

After many minutes, one of the wingly females stepped forward. Clearing her throat, she said "Charlie Frahma, she of the pure heart and without malice, go into the nether realm with our love and blessing. May you rest in peace." And so the other winglies bowed, showing their final respects to the now deceased Charlie Frahma.

* * *

**Note: **Phew, probably the hardest fight scene I've had to write, but I think it came out one of the best. But also a sad chapter, where we say goodbye to one of our beloved characters :(

I'd also like to make a note in regards to Rose's weapon. I know that in reality a rapier is a very thin sword, usually indented for fencing and dueling. However in the game, you'll notice Rose's rapier has quite a broad blade, and as such that is what I'm going off, so just thought I'd make note of that to prevent confusion.

Just like to thank once more to the reviews I'm getting from you people. You guys really make writing this story worth it.

Also it's come to my attention that I actually put diseased instead of deceased in the last sentance. Sorry about that, that would have killed the sad moment a little lol. Thanks to Nymphadora17 for picking that one up. I have to self edit, so some things will slip past my eyes (although usually not things that large).


	47. Chapter 47

**Chapter 47**

As Rose landed in the outskirts of Zenebatos, she was met with an almost overpowering sensation of exhaustion, as if the spell itself had been cast by her. She would later conclude that perhaps the winglies weren't able to summon enough power to grant her passage the entire way, and so to make the rest of the journey the spell leeched off her own energy. Falling against the inner wall, small orbs of green flashing insistently against the chrome background, Rose took a few minutes to recuperate.

_I actually made it _she thought with amazement. She sighed as the cost of her progress came back to her, sending a mournful ache that shook her very soul. She took a few more minutes to grieve silently, before she pushed on, emerging out of the small teleport room that Zack and Lucile had been in not too long ago and into the ominous outskirts, a yellow blanket of mist covering the bottom of the chasm.

Now the question of what to do now occurred to her, and for a moment she was lost. If Zack and Lucile were here, she would have no idea of locating them, and if not then she would have wasted precious time doing so. She frowned, trying to find a solution. Her pondering would be soon interrupted however in the form of a small metal android.

"WARNING, WARNING, UNDER MARTIAL LAW, ALL HUMANS ARE PROHIBITED TO ENTER THE CITY, NO EXECPTIONS." It paused, the small red orb on its chrome head flickering.

"EXAMINATION COMPLETE, YOU ARE FREE TO ENTER. HOWEVER MAKE SURE YOU FOLLOW OUR RULES AND REGULATIONS, STRICT PENALTIES APPLY."

Rose looked at it with a look of absurdity and mistrust. A thought from deep within her surfaces, and before the android could return to its post; she quickly asked "What article number is this law?"

"LAW ARTICLE 643"

Rose nodded in silent affirmation. The small robot promptly flew back from whence it came, floating on the small hexagonal platform that seemed to grant it its mobility.

_So no humans are permitted to enter… _Rose thought, looking herself over quickly as if to look for any physical abnormalities that would mistake her as non human. She found none, which only prompted more questions as to how it could mistake her as another being, she certainly wasn't a wingly, and her human linage could be traced back to the Dragon Campaign.

_Still, this is no doubt Frahma or Wens doing as means to deter her progression. So even if the outcome is a little eerie, it's to my benefit._

A thought intruded her mind, smashing all others apart, filling her with a sense of hope and optimism.

_Perhaps they got caught on got thrown into the jail. _It was a long shot, but it gave her a point of action. She thanked her earlier intuition to find out the law article number, she could perhaps change it if she tried. Satisfied with her itinerary, she began to make her way east, where she would venture into the prison. And if all go well, without any hiccups along the way.

Moving towards the first platform, she turned to the small robot behind the makeshift metal counter. The android that Zack had destroyed earlier was gone, replace by an identical bot which stood there absently. Rose approached it.

"Permission to access the prison" Rose stated. The robot examined her in much the same way the one at the entrance had, a small click noise was heard at the end of this robots examination however.

"PERMISSION TO ACCESS THE PRISON GRANTED. PLEASE STEP ON THE PLATFORM."

Rose did as she was told and stepped on the small metal circular platform. Without warning it shot off, moving upwards to the top of the city.

In Zenebatos, contrary to what many thought, the prison is located at the top of the town. Even if someone did somehow find a way to break out from the inside (A feat which thus far, at least to her is unheard of) you were stuck on a building many stories above the rest, and subsequently, unless you had some access to floating or flying abilities, you'd be stranded without anyway off.

The prison itself was split into three large cells, each with a bridging walk way to connect the three. It looked like a twisted sort of triangle Rose noted, and in the middle another robot on a small round floating platform watched on idly.

The air was dense and foggy, and for she felt a small a wave of nausea as her body slowly attuned to the altitude sickness. When the moment passed, she shook her head, as if to ward of the haze, and continued towards the robot.

"ARE YOU THE ONE WHO REQUESTED ENTRY TO THE PRISON?" the robot asked abruptly.

"Yes" Rose replied. She paused for a moment. "Are there any current prisoners?"

"TWO HUMANS, ON THE CHARGE OF VIOLATING LAWS 643, UNAUTHORIZED HUMAN ENRTY, AND LAW 342, ASSAULTING A LAW MARITAL.

Her eyes burned fiercely. "Which cell? Can I see them?"

"DILIBERATION ON THE PUNISHMENT OF THE CRIMES ARE STILL PENDING. NO ONE IS PERMITTED TO SEE THE PRISONERS UNTILL THE DILIBERATION ENDS."

Rose nodded, then in a quick fluid movement that was as quick as a flash, withdrew her rapier and slice the robotic warden in half.

_I don't have long _she thought. Glancing at the three large cells, almost giant towers in their own rights, she closed her eyes and focused, focused on feeling the life force of what she hoped would be her comrades. Her eyes flew open.

_There _She thought, glancing at the one on the right, closest to her. Walking up to the wall, now the only thing that barred her path from entry, she ran her hands across the cool surface, and while it looked to be made of bricks, it felt metallic.

_Kongol was able to break in from the outside using sheer force, so its weak point must be the outer layer of the cell._

Closing her right fist and drawing it back, she focused her inner energy, centralizing it around her hand. A small aura of darkness enclosed it, and when she thought she had trapped as much energy as she could, to continue would increase the risk of holding too much and destroying her hand, she cried and let it out in a solid punch, which connect with a loud bang against the prison's outer wall.

For a few moments it fell silent, nothing happening. Then small crack began web out from the point of contact. Repeating the process another two times, Rose was finally able to shatter the wall, and thus began the long awaited reunion.

Zack and Lucile both heard the crashes from outside, and both of them braced themselves, Zack drawing his speak (which, thanks the gods, they didn't take off him) and Lucile assuming her battle stance.

"An enemy?" Lucile wondered aloud.

"Could very well be. Be on your toes."

After another two rounds of the same smashing noise, the ground shook as a large portion of the wall collapsed, small bits of debris crashing on the floor.

_Assassins? _Zack wondered, gripping his spear, ready to strike at any moment.

Zack saw a shadow, a silhouette, in the darkness, added with the dust from the remains of the wall, made it impossible to see anything else but that, he could make out what he fancied was a sword. Getting a head of himself as he sometimes did, he took the initiative, sprinting forward and thrusting his spear towards the shadow with impressive speeds.

"Zack no!" Lucile cried but he couldn't hear. His paranoia and adrenaline got the better of him, and before Lucile knew it, he was already upon the shadow.

Rose saw this of course, saw it and understood immediately why Zack had reacted in such a way. The spear drew close to her chest, but she simply side stepped and grabbed the pole under the tip, drawing the spear, and subsequently the user close to her.

"Zack it's me" she said softly. Zack's eyes widened, everything now a haze, as it usually was in the midst of battle, and it took him a moment to register the voice, and who it came from. The dust had cleared now, and he could see Rose clearly, her cold blue eyes regarding him calmly, despite the fact he had just tried to kill her (inadvertently of course, he had no idea it was her, as far as he knew she was dead).

For a long minute, neither of them said anything, just continued to gaze. Zack couldn't believe what was in front of him; it was like a passing dream. He had not long ago come to terms with her death (and in that sense apart his own) and now here she was, flesh and blood standing in front of him. He unconsciously let go of his spear (Rose did the same) and it fell with a clinck, the only sound that would disturb the otherwise wordless and soundless reunion.

"Good to see you're alive" Lucile said from behind them. Rose turned to her.

"You too."

"You sure have a way of making people worry. We were sure it was suicide with that stunt you pulled."

"Well I'm still alive" she replied plainly. Zack, his emotional floodgate crumbling, gave way to his uncontainable feelings. He rushed to her abruptly, scooping her up in a vice like embrace.

"I can't believe you're alive!" he bellowed happily, lifting her off her feet and crushing her in his bear hug. "We thought you were dead. Wen said you were dead!" Rose raised one of her free hands threateningly.

"If you don't put me down this instant, we _will_ have a death on our hands" she said sharply. Zack ignored her, still caught up in his own sense of happiness, relief and content. Rose noticed these features and more appear on his face, and once more she felt her most inner defenses melt away. He was smiling, truly smiling, and she found his happiness contagious, for she was showing the faintest of smiles. Her eyes closed, and she gave in to the moment. No, she didn't just give in; she threw herself in head first. She felt wanted, something she hadn't truly felt since her first circle of friends many lifetimes ago. She had been required, needed even in some aspects for one task of another, but even while she traveled with Dart, she never truly wanted, like she belonged. Now things have changed, and her eyes closed and flashes of memories from her past collided with the present in a giant collage of emotions and feelings. It wasn't until after the seemingly short epiphany (Which wasn't so short after all) that she realized she was no longer off the ground, nor in Zack's grasp. Zack and Lucile stood a few feet away from her, gazing at her with scrutiny.

It took Rose a few seconds to understand what they were gawking about. She was smiling, and it wasn't a faint small one that only flashed once a blue moon. It was a true smile, still thin, but broad enough to look almost unnatural on what would usually be an almost expressionless Rose. After comprehension dawned on her, she turned her back, abashed. She thanked the gods that be that the room wasn't well lit, she was sure she could feel her cheeks beginning to burn.

"So now what?" Lucile prompted before the silence could become too unnerving.

"You'll have to wait here for a bit longer while I try and change the law of non human entry."

Zack's face turned sour, apprehensive to lose Rose again after just having her back. But he said nothing.

"Won't they be suspicious about that?" Lucile asked, pointing to the broken robot. "That's the second one now."

"They'll be slow to pick up on it" Rose said, turning to face them. "Last time I checked communication between the prison and the rest of Zenebatos were minimal. I'm hoping we'll be well away from this area by the time they raise the alarm."

"I hope so as well. I hate this place."

Rose nodded, then turned to leave. "I shouldn't be long. After that, we'll camp on the outskirts, exchange events, then venture forward once more."

"If anything happens, I'll be sure to signal you" Lucile added.

"Good." And with that, Rose walked towards the circular platform and headed back down to the central part of town.

Moving back downward to the robot behind the counter, she turned to it and asked passage to the Legislation center. The center, a large building in the eastern part of town, stood with a dominant presence, high above almost all else. Three different levels of thin catwalks rotated around lower part of the pillar like setup, each with various green teleporters. Several purple sentries patrolled each level, sending any who were prohibited to be in the town to the prison above. Rose thanked the gods she didn't have the problem of sneaking past them, they all had the same glitch and regarded her as a wingly. It troubled her more and more as time went, and not for the first time she wondered if it was some sort of trap made for her. Gliding through the teleport devices like a cat in the shadows, she quickly made her way to the Legislation Center.

Despite the large frame of the structure, it was much smaller once you got inside. A circular platform with six robots around it was the main feature. They were a collective counsel, and anything that needed amending or any particular law exceptions were to be deliberated here. A small walkway led out of the platform and towards three lifts, and beyond that was just the view of the rest of the town and the yellow mist that lurked beneath.

There was a small line of robots lined up before the platform along the path that led to the three lifts. Only one problem could be attended to at a time, and as such you were required to line up behind the entrance of the circle, marked by a thin blue line. Anyone who tried to skip the line or push in would be treated to a very loud lecture, as well as a friendly escort to the back of the line. Two robots had lined up before her (she hasn't recalled a time that the line was ever empty) and waited patiently for her turn.

When the line dwindled down to her and the last robot in front of her left, she walked up and stood in the middle of the plateau.

"IS THIS A SUBMISSION OF A BILL?" one of the androids asked with its booming voice.

"No."

"IS THIS A REVISION OF THE LAW?"

"Yes."

"STATE THE NUMBER OF THE ARTICLE TO BE REVISED."

"Law Article 643" Rose replied.

"WINGLY CODE ARTICLE 643: ALL HUMANS ARE PROHIBTED TO ENTER THE CITY."

A small silence as the counsel of robots spoke among themselves.

"WINGLY AMENDED CODE ARTICLE 643: HUMANS ARE NO LONGER PROHIBITED TO ENTER THE CITY."

Another pause.

"IS THAT ALL?"

"Yes, that will be all" and with that, Rose stepped off the platform. _The laws are still easy to manipulate I see _Rose thought as she stepped on the green sphere that would take her out of the Legislation Center. _But something is off. Really off. _It was a feeling she couldn't shake. As soon as she had entered this town she knew something was amiss, but now it was all but a certainly. Something was definitely wrong with this town. She made her way back to the prison, hoping to find out what that something was before it was too late.

* * *

Zack had been pacing the prison ceaselessly for the last hour Rose was gone. Rose wasn't the only one who had a bad feeling about the place, and he felt particularly on guard. Almost waiting, waiting for something to happen. _Something's coming _he thought, gripping his spear. Lucile was sitting down on the outer wall, seemingly resting.

"She'll be fine" Lucile said to a worried Zack. "She knows better than any of us how to take care of herself. Just be patient, try and rest a little. She knew he wouldn't rest, but she was happy. Seeing Rose again seemed to restore him to his old self, rather then the cynical shell that was beginning taking over.

"But how do you know? Anything could happen to her in this crazy town" he said, flailing his hands for added effect.

"You have to trust her Zack. Trust who she is and what she can do. Worrying yourself over these things will only destroy you."

"… I know" Zack admitted. "But after only just seeing her, alive and in the flesh… I'm scared that if I let her go, I may really never see her again this time." He had stopped pacing now. A noise. A loud buzzing sound, coming from below and getting closer.

"For the time being, I think you better start worrying about us" Lucile warned, shooting to her feet. "We have a visitor."

Zack moved towards Lucile, readying himself. What appeared a few seconds later were two smaller silver robots behind a large hooded black android, which was taller and thinner then that other two. It was carrying a large scythe, wooden at the stem with a large chrome crescent blade curving off of it.

"WE HAVE DILIBERATED YOUR PENALTY OF YOUR CRIMES." One of the smaller robots declared.

"YOUR PUNISHMENT IS DEATH" the other one finished.

Zack let out a small smile. "Death eh? Well, I'd like to see you try and claim me!"

The apparent executioner robot wasted no time. It darted towards Zack, raising its scythe over head.

"Far to slow!' Zack bellowed, brining his spear up to parry the blow. He moved around to its flank, bringing his spear up for a sweeping blow.

"ACTIVIATING PHYSICAL BARRIER!" one of the smaller robots announced.

Zack's spear collided with the executioner's body with a solid thud, but to Zack's surprise, it only bounced of, not leaving so much as a mark. It left him vulnerable for a few seconds while he had to re-gather himself, but before the robot could take advantage of the situation, Lucile was already upon it. Appearing behind it like a flash, she cried "Bear Paw!" Turning her palm inward and thrusting it into the back of the executioner's head. It was one of the oldest and deadliest moves taught by the Rouge Martial Arts style, it used immense power to target the nerves in a certain area. When done correctly, you could temporarily shut down a limb, or even kill if struck in the chest or head. While Lucile was aware this robot had no nerves, perhaps if she applied enough pressure to the head, it could short circuit the wires in its head.

But once again it proved futile, leaving not so much as a dent. The robot pivoted with improved speed, swinging the scythe with it. _It's gotten faster! _Lucile realized with alarm as she moved backwards as fast as she could, trying to move out of its striking range. But the scythe was long and its range great. Despite how fast she was the end of the blade still scratched the top of her chest, just below neck. She grunted in displeasure as small dribbled of blood flowed from the open wound.

"Are you alright!?" Zack cried, making his way to her.

"I'm fine, it's just a flesh wound" she replied, readying herself once again. "But it appears we can't hurt it with simple attacks."

Zack chuckled. "Seems that way."

"You seem to be enjoying yourself."

"Well, it's the first time we've had a battle where our chances of winning are above zero."

Lucile looked at her opponent. "Don't count your eggs until their in the basket." The executioner advanced once more.

"I'll try some magic" Zack murmured, and he held out its hand. _It's been a while since I've had the chance to do this_ Zack thought. _I was never good at magic, but I should be able to do this… _he remembered Rose's earlier training advice, and slowly a small orb of fire began to manifest in his hand. "Let see how you like fire."

"ACTIVATING ANTI MAGIC FIELD" the second small bot announced. The orb of fire in Zack's hand extinguished immediately.

"What the hell?" Zack wondered. He focused his inner energy once more, trying to draw upon the power of the dragon. But he got nothing. The tie that linked his spiritual energy to the energy of the dragon was severed, and he could no more use magic than when before he became a Dragoon Knight.

"Look out!' Lucile warned, and Zack had only a second to roll out of the way of the incoming blow.

"RESISTANCE IS FUTILE" the executioner beamed.

Zack looked towards the two small robots hovering behind the executioner.

"Lucile, listen up. I think it's those two behind it that are granting Mr. Reaper over here his ability to become impervious to our attacks. If you can keep him distracted, I'll sneak up and destroy the other two."

"In hopes that his invulnerability will fade, right?"

"You got a better plan?" Zack asked. She shook her head.

"Then go" Lucile implored and she dashed towards the executioner. The machine made a buzzing sound as it raised the scythe skyward again. Lucile sidestepped the subsequent lunge, moving backwards to try and draw it away, yet she was very mindful of the large gap that hung ominously behind her, waiting for someone to make a wrong step and plunge to the bottom of Zenebatos.

Zack meanwhile had already approached one of the small bots that hovered idly, seemingly oblivious to Zack's advances. "Take this little birdie!" And with an almighty cleave, the small android was split in half. It made a crackled buzzing sound and convulsed slightly, and Zack gave it another quick swipe to finish it off.

_That was easy _Zack thought. _Almost to eas- _he wasn't able to complete the thought before a current of electricity ran up his spear and though his body. He cried out in surprise and pain as the discharge of electricity that sparked from the destroyed robot coursed through him. He dropped his spear immediately, seeing how it was acting as a conductor between the two, and the shocks stopped at once.

"Zack!?" Lucile shrieked, hearing his painful moans. She took her eyes of her opponent and glanced over at a kneeling Zack. "Are you alright!?"

Although his vision was a little fuzzy, he could see the executioner approach Lucile from behind, waving the scythe around menacingly.

"Lucile, keep your eyes on your target!" Zack fired back, and she was able to whirl around just in time to evade a would-be fatal blow. _Shit, that's the second time I've nearly been killed _she thought furiously.

Zack was able to shake off what almost felt like a state of paralysis he re-equipped himself with his spear and advanced to the next robot. The electrical shock had wrought numbness around his body, and he found his body was not quick to reply to his commands, but like the last robot, this one hovered entirely ignorant of Zack's existence.

Readying himself once more (and to quickly drop his spear in case of a second electrical occurrence) he brought his pear downward with an almighty cleave. Instead of the expected clean cut and the following volts of electricity, it simply bounced off, as if it struck an invisible barrier. Zack recoiled at the unexpected reverse of pressure, nearly losing his footing. He glanced over at Lucile to see how she was fairing against her opponent and worry struck him when he spied how dangerously close to the ledge she was. Moving the thoughts to the back of his mind, at least temporarily, he put all his thought into the problem at hand. It seemed that the barrier not only affected the executioner, but the other bots as well. Yet he was still able to destroy the other bot with pure force. And idea struck him. _Their connected to the one robot, but not each other _Zack thought. _Kinda like an extension power up, however the power up only affects that robot and Mr. Grim reaper over there, but other than that their defenseless! _Putting his theory into practice, he crouched low and focused his inner energy. _Then the one I just destroyed was emitting the anti magic field, so now I should be able to destroy this one with magic! _

A small sphere of fiery matter glowed brightly in his hand, and when he felt he had summoned enough density (magic was never his forte, least of all now when he was out of practice, so he could in no way accurately measure the force of the spell) he took a few safe steps back, then hurled the scorching ball towards his foe. It exploded on impact, embers flying out in a small arc, followed by a small shockwave. What remained of the small android was engulfed in an inferno.

_It worked! _"Lucile, attack it now!" Zack cried, And Lucile, who had managed to veer right away from the ledge and lead the executioner back to towards the eastern prison cell they were held in not too long ago. She took a step back, putting all her energy on her back leg, then sprung off, driving her fist into the torso of the robot. It broke right through one end and out the other, her fist impaling the machine as she heard the circuits spark and fry. She didn't receive the shock treatment Zack had earlier, although pieces of shrapnel and tangled wiring secured her arm in place, preventing a quick withdrawal. She looked up at the towering robot, and its arms sagged briefly, before it flickered to life once more, raising its weapon in a last act of defiance. Alarm ran through her body which quickly turned to dismay when she couldn't pry her arm free, all she received for those efforts were shots of sharp pain as small pieces of metal and other hard fabrics tore through her arm and parts of her bicep. Zack looked on in horror as the executioner raised the scythe up high above its head, ready to slice right through his companion. Try as he might, the shock still left him weakened and his mobility hindered. Even under the best of circumstances, he doubted at that moment that if he was fully able he'd be able to cover the distance, and in his current state, it was all but impossible. He could only slump to his knees and await the finishing blow. Lucile winced and closed her eyes, waiting for the explosion of brief pain she thought she may feel before passing into the void as the sharp tool cleaved her body. She waited, waited, and waited. Nothing.

_Crash!_

Moments passed by, and when the events in her mind she thought would come to pass didn't, she opened one tentative eye. The next moment both eyes flew open in surprise, the arm wielding the scythe was missing, the weapon itself lying a few feet away from her. The robot made a strange buzzing sound, and after a quick glanced she found the culprit.

"Rose!" Lucile beamed. She was kneeling, her sword drawn and the arm lying beside her. She shot her a sharp look. "What are you doing!? Finish it already!"

Lucile was taken aback momentarily, before she steeled herself, trying not to think about the pain that would follow, and she used all her strength to pull her arm free. It slid out quickly enough, although large lines of small but deep gashes were imprinted up her arm. Before she could worry about that however she took a step back then swept her leg high, her foot kicking the executioner's head clean off. It buzzed for a few seconds before falling down in a heap, joining its dismantled brethren. Zack let out a large sigh of relief.

"You became too complacent Lucile" Rose commented as she sheathed her blade. Comprehension dawned on the white warrior.

"You watched the whole thing!?"

She nodded, inspecting the carnage.

"You should have been more careful" she said dryly. "Although on a whole, you both did well. You kept your calm, found the weakness and exploited it." She walked over to Lucile, inspecting her injured arm. She traced a finger across some of the cuts, and Lucile winced in pain at the contact.

"They seem to be only flesh deep, no muscle or tendon damage. Your healing ability should be able to take care of it, although I'd still put some disinfectant on it if I were you." Lucile nodded and Rose made her way toward a still kneeling Zack. Now that the adrenaline of the battle had worn off, he still felt an aching pain that pulsed throughout his body.

"Are you alright?" Rose asked. He nodded gingerly.

"Just a little sore."

"Can you stand or walk?"

Zack slowly rose to his feet, and to his relief the pain didn't intensify.

"I'll be alright."

After a few minutes passed for the duo to catch their breaths and tend to their wounds as best they could, Rose suggested they make their way back to the outskirts of the town to camp for the night. She didn't trust the town enough to stay at the inn, so they camped not far from the teleporter room that granted them passage to the town. Rose disappeared briefly once more to get some basic supplies. Healing items and a couple of tents was what the supplies mainly encompassed; after all they could only carry around so much.

To Rose's relief the law change she made took effect immediately, they were not hassled on their way out. Slowly they set up their small tents, then gathered around in a small circle, their only light the stars above the flashing obelisk that sat on top of the teleport alcove. They could gather no wood or any burnable materials, so they went without their usual bonfire. The thick yellowish mist that resided under the city seemed to climb as the night grew own, settling nearly on top of them.

The trio took the time to then exchange their respect events. Rose heard Zack and Lucile's account before giving her own, leaving out nothing. Rose was as puzzled as they were about Wen's resignation of the Red Eye Dragoon Spirit, especially after hearing how diligently Frahma was searching for them.

"As you both probably already suspect, we cannot simply assume this an act of good will" Rose began, looking up at the stars. "This will in some way benefit him and Melbu, so be weary."

"But it could be important we find out!" Zack said with exasperation. Rose shook her head slowly.

"There is no point pondering that which cannot be answered Zack. Speculation will get us nowhere. I'm sure it'll be revealed in due time, if we survive that long, however your time is better spend on other things. The point is you do have the spirit back, and that much benefits us."

_But at what cost? _Zack wanted to add, but kept it to himself. He was sore and tired, and the last thing he wanted to do was get into an argument.

When Rose revealed the last of her story, the battle with the Virage and the death of her friend, Zack and Lucile's eyes dropped. They could tell just from the change in tone of her voice as she recollected the events that Charlie's death had hit her very hard. But most of all, she blamed herself for the incident, adding another life to her already overburdened shoulders.

"It wasn't your fault, there was no way you could have known" Zack protested, but she shook her head once more.

"If I had been more careful, it would have been avoided." Zack looked ready to object once more, but Lucile shot him a look that said "let it be." He held back with a sigh.

"In any event, unless there is anything you two would like to add, then I think it'd be best if we got some sleep. Tomorrow we head into Mayfil, in what will probably be the final confrontation. She paused for a moment. "This could very well be our final night."

"The usual odds against us?" Zack added with an unhappy smile. Rose shook her head.

"They're more against us now than ever before."

Lucile was quiet, giving the finishing touches on her damaged arm. To her relief the wounds were only skin deep, and she was able to heal them to a small scar. She looked up at the two.

"Will we meet this Melbu Frahma there?" she asked. Rose shrugged.

"It's a good possibility. Much of his manpower is revolving around his ability to force the departed into vessels. He won't want to give it up easily."

Lucile detected a false note in her tone. "You don't expect him there though do you?"

"… No. Melbu is the type to only take matters into his own hands when all other options are exhausted. More likely than not, he'll have his best lieutenants in charge."

"Plus, he's probably scared of you" Zack put in. Rose's lips twitched into an evil smile.

"And so he has every right to be. If I find him…" she trailed off, leaving the implied gruesome ending she would deliver to their imaginations.

After a little more idle banter the three of them retired for the night. Zack and Lucile were asleep almost instantly, the days battle had taken a considerable toll on them. Rose however stayed awake as usual, eagerly anticipating the final battle in silence. Yet deep in her thoughts, she still couldn't shake the feeling that tonight would be their final night as a trio. Something was going to happen, and if the group split up once more (although she felt it was more of a when than an if), it would be a permanent one. The thought brought back the image of Charlie in her mind, and once more she began to mourn.

* * *

**Note: **Wow, it's been quite some time since a release eh? I've been somewhat busy over the couple of months (Exams, Christmas, New years), and with the time in-between I was occupied usually doing other things. So I'll pencil this as a prolonged hiatus, but hopefully with the dawn of a new year 9hope everyone enjoyed theirs), I should be right to get back into it and submit the remaining chapters on a usual basis. Sorry for the wait~


	48. Chapter 48: Interlude 3 Requited Love

**Chapter 48: Interlude 3 - Requited Love**

As usual sleep did not come to Rose, and after hours of tossing and turning, she gave up, exiting the bed and walking into the awaiting darkness. She walked a few meters away from the tents and sat down on the stony ledge, gazing up at the stars still sprayed across the gloom like an abstract pattern. Her mind worked with the thousands of thoughts that intruded her mind as it always did, the various outcomes of the morrows journey seemed to be the hot topic. Growing tired of the constant nagging in her mind, she stood up and drew her sword in hopes that a little swordplay will divert her attention.

She danced silently in the dark, slashing her sword out at invisible enemies. Her feet moved nimbly in all directions as if to evade incoming blows, her blade blocking and parrying flawlessly in an imagined battle. It looked magnificent.

Zack had quietly been watching most of the spectacle from just outside his tent. He had got up for the same reason, although all of that was now forgotten as he observed Rose's internal duel. He almost sighed at the splendor, the stars casting just enough light for him to gleam her swordplay and its shadowy brilliance.

After ten or so minutes she stopped. Sweat beads ran down from her head as her lungs battle for breath. Despite that, she felt considerably better. No, _much _better. She almost felt herself again. Her attention was diverted when she heard the sound of clapping, and when she swung around towards the direction of the tents she finally spied Zack, sitting down applauding in respect.

Rose's face showed momentary surprise at not detecting his presence, but she masked it well, hiding it behind her usual stoic demeanor. Zack got to his feet then walked towards his comrade, grinning happily.

"That was amazing" he said softly. Before she could reply, he amended "You're amazing."

"Only when it comes to combat, the only thing I'm good at" she replied flatly. Zack shook his head.

"That's nonsense and you know it." He paused. "For all your wisdom and knowledge, you're very negative towards yourself."

"It's just fact. Killing is what I excel at, what I've done for eleven thousand years. Anything outside killing and combat is very much uncharted territory. I've been taught nothing else."

"I disagree. While you may have once been a vessel for killing, I sit here and can tell you you're more human then anyone else. You feel remorse, sadness, anger… even love, although you seldom show these emotions. But just because you hide them doesn't mean you don't feel them."

Rose was quiet for a time, picking the right words for her response. He was right and she knew it, that fact had become more evident to her over the last few weeks than ever before.

"You know" she began, switching topics. "If I had to, I could still probably kill you. With that in mind, can you honestly call me a trusted friend? Or even a comrade?"

Rose expected Zack's expression to turn to hurt or even anger, but he didn't lose his smile.

"There it is again, that barrier you put up whenever a situation become close or personal." He waited for her to reply and when none came, he continued. "And if that was the case, I believe it would be for the greater good, and if my death, for example resolved the conflicts we have right now, then I'll gladly lay my life down to you."

Rose was stunned into her perpetual silence.

"So yes, I consider you a comrade. I consider you a friend. I even consider you…" he lingered, not completing his thought although Rose knew very well the implications. The internal warning siren went of, and she was already seeking a way out. But before she could even begin, Zack shout out a hand and gabbed her arm, as if he read her very thoughts. He turned her directly on to him, only a few inches apart, locked in speechless gaze.

Rose felt it hard to breathe, his direct attention this close and this personal sent her mind reeling in all directions. Yet she could still say nothing; only look into his eyes dumbly. Zack looked at the women he had grown to love, despite all her faults and past atrocities and was fighting to stay in control. His mind was telling him one thing, yet he body wanted another. After a brief internal struggle, a victor was clear. He leaned in and pressed his lips against hers, throwing all caution (and common sense) into the wind.

Rose froze, unable to react physically, yet her mind screamed. It was here and now, a decision she had put off far too long had to be made. She could either push him away and forever keep him at arms length, or she could do what part of her longed to do (exactly how large a portion that part was she didn't know, although she knew it was an important question) and let him breach the final emotional and physical barricade that only one other person in her life ever has. The conflict roared as he kissed her. She didn't in anyway respond to her kiss, nor did she push him away, it was completely neutral.

As she would later find out the kiss was rather brief, no where near as long as she had thought it, in her mind it went on an eternity, but she finally made up her mind. She considered all she felt and knew, and now she could say with absolute certainty that if nothing else, she finally made a decision, and she would never look back. Closing her eyes slowly, she surrendered herself to him and their moment of passion.

Zack sensed this, but rather then take further advantage of it like she thought he would, he pulled away, breaking the contact. He got his answer and his wish, and that was all he needed for now. Both of them stood once more looking at each other, neither moving. Both of their faces were beat red, but neither of them commented. It was a moment that needed no words or actions, and to do so would only break the tranquility of this perfect moment.

Rose was the first to speak. "Zack, I..." he silence her with a quiet soosh. She looked at him with an expression of surprise. It had always been her silencing him. Now, in their moment of fervor, it was him silencing her. She found it strangely ironic.

He motioned her to sit, and when she did he followed. "Now speak."

Now that she was given the chance to, no words came to her. She could only shrug, embarrassed that that's all she could do in such a situation. Zack merely laughed. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Are you mocking me?"

"Wouldn't dream of it" he replied with a smile. Rose turned her gaze skyward, then leaned her head against one of Zack's broad shoulders.

Zack glanced at the black rose which still hung from the side of her head above her ear. He found it both amazing and disquieting that not only had it not moved since she acquired it, it was completely untouched. He put a finger on one of the small petals, tracing around it. A feeling of peculiarity overtook him and he broke contact. Disquieting indeed.

Zack looked down at Rose, her eyes closed, and he thought her asleep. As if to read his mind she said "I'm, still awake." He began to talk, or babble as Rose would call it, but she didn't mind. She listened and put in her own input where necessary, enjoying the simple fact that they were able to talk, to talk about something different than death, fighting, battles and sacrifices. Enjoying not only the simple yet light hearted conversation they were having but also his presence. She finally had rope to pry herself free of the swamp or darkness she was drowning herself in.

After good amount of talking Rose felt tiredness sweep over her. Removing herself from Zack's shoulder she stood up.

"I think it's best we get some sleep" she said almost dreamily. Zack agreed and stood up, facing her. They fell into an embrace, enjoying the warmth of one another as they cradled softly. A minute later they broke contact once more.

"Goodnight Zack" Rose said, then added "and thank you."

"Zack nodded. "Sleep well." They looked at either other, neither of them moving towards their tents, as if waiting for something to happen. Finally Rose turned and made her way towards her tent. Zack pondered stealing another kiss for a moment, then thought _ah hell with it. _He caught up to Rose before she could enter her tent and kissed her once more. It was as much as a surprise to Rose as the first one was, and while it was just as short as well, this time the kiss went both ways. Silently they explored each other for a few more seconds before the kiss was broken.

"I know it doesn't need to be said, but I love you Rose" Zack half whispered. Rose looked up at him, her mind finding the right words.

"One day very soon… I hope I can voice the same thing" Rose said, then knitted her brow together with a frown. "It's not that I don't feel the same way, it's just feeling it and voicing it are… two totally different things for me. It's a huge step that –"Zack cut her off mid sentence.

"I understand" he said with a calming reassurance. She smiled briefly.

"But know this; even thought I can't say it yet: The feeling is mutual." Rose only hoped that when she found the courage to say it, it wouldn't be too late. With that they bade each other a final goodnight, but before Zack could duck into his tent Rose added: "Also, I hope you and Lucile are ready for another duel tomorrow." Zack looked at her blankly.

"With you again?" She didn't answer with words but another brief smile, and then she ducked into her tent, leaving Zack to mull over it. Not long later Zack was in his tent ready to sleep. Lucile was also awake in her tent, looking upwards with a grin.


	49. Chapter 49

**Chapter 49**

Despite their late night, Rose and Zack were up earlier then Lucile, who seemed to need longer time between large battles to recuperate. The sun had only just crept over the horizon, indicating it wasn't much past dawn.

Zack had of course barraged her with questions about the duel she had mentioned the previous night, but she wouldn't elaborate further until Lucile was up, to save for a second explanation. Instead, Rose and Zack proceeded to cook up the basic foods they were able to salvage from the shops within town. Zack expressed disbelief that food would be available in a town full of robots, but as Rose reminded, it was after all a wingly created town, and winglies had to eat just like everyone else.

Lucile awoke an hour or so later, yawning as she exited her tent. She joined them sitting and eating the canned meal around a small fire, which she scoffed down ravenously.

"So, now can we find out about it?" Zack asked, his voice a trifle desperate. It had obviously been playing on his mind ever since she mentioned it. Lucile looked up, her attention diverting from her food. "What's this?" she asked after swallowing her mouthful of food.

"We're going to undergo a final exercise before we try to gain access to Mayfil" Rose said. She had already finish her food, which she had only very little to begin with. Zack couldn't recall one instance in their entire journey of her ever eating a decent sized meal.

"A final duel, if you will. Consider it the last step of your training." Lucile raised an eyebrow while Zack voiced his confirmation.

"Against you, right?" Rose nodded.

"Although things will be a little different this time. You will both be trying to attack me, however this time you will go all out, no holds barred, no punches pulled." She paused a moment. "In essence, you will both come at me with the intent to kill me." Lucile said nothing but Zack once more voice his feelings.

"Trying to kill you?" he said incredulously. "What kind of joke is that, we're not going to try and kill you." Rose's eyes narrowed.

"Well you had better, because I'll be coming at you with the same intent." Half of Zack didn't belief she actually would and felt it more of a threat to get him motivated than anything else, however peering into her cold and calculating eyes, he found no reassurance. "Like last time, the duel will end once you both land a hit on me each." It was Lucile's turn to pique up this time.

"Both of us?" she said.

"Oh, didn't I mention I will be dueling you both individually this time? I already know your ability to work as a team, which is quite impressive. However the reality is that you may not always have the luxury of an ally guarding your back, in which case you can only count on yourself. So this time I'd like to test your own individual abilities."

"But… what if you know, we do accidently hit you with a fatal blow or something that ends up killing you?" Zack asked, although his voice betrayed his internal belief: they couldn't kill her even if they tried as a duo, let alone in singles combat. Rose's momentary chuckle seemed to mirror that belief.

"Trust me, neither of you could actually kill me, no matter how hard you tried." It didn't sound as smug and conceited as it perhaps should have, the way Rose said it was the way she stated everything else: as plain fact. "I've had many ages of experience over the both of you, so if you're worried about killing me, don't. And even if I do get injured" she turned to Lucile. "You have the restorative means to fix any wounds they may come of it.

"Only flesh wounds" Lucile reminded. Rose nodded expectantly.

"So you will use whatever it takes, whether it be by transformation, magic or just using your plain old head." She turned to Zack. "You'll be first." Zack groaned in protest.

"I knew it'd turn out like this."

"We won't actually commence until a little later, so the two of you do whatever it is you do to prepare for an encounter, I'll meet you back here in a couple of hours." With that, Rose began to walk towards town, leaving the two of them to mull over the latest revelation.

"Does she plan to fight us here?" Zack wondered aloud.

"Is there anywhere else?" Lucile replied. Zack looked around, then shook his head.

"We'll end up creating a disturbance. Not to mention the lack of room we'll have." He snorted unhappily. "Why are we doing this when our real foes lie ahead of us? We have no time to waste. As Rose said, every second we waste is only giving them more strength."

"We must trust her" Lucile assured gently. "She hasn't led us astray yet."

"And that's the problem. It's not that I don't trust her; it's just that she's overdue to make her first incorrect decision. And the timing couldn't be worse if it was the case."

Lucile shook her head, rising to a stand. "You've become far too cynical." She began to walk towards town. "In any event, I suggest you use this time to prepare. This will be no easy battle."

"Yeah yeah" Zack replied but didn't stand. Lucile watched him for a few seconds before disappearing into the town, perhaps intending to explore. Zack let out a sigh.

"God help us all."

* * *

Rose was the last to return, and quite a bit later then she told them to rendezvous. "I hope you two used your time wisely" Rose remarked. "I'd like to know what you both did."

"I explored the town and meditated, which helps focus my mind" Lucile said.

"And you?" Rose asked, looking at Zack who hadn't appeared to move. Zack let out a small grin. "Like I'm going to tell you. You'll find out soon enough." Rose nodded.

"Good. Perhaps you're not entirely foolish after all."

_She's testing us already _Lucile thought with surprise. _Of course, I should have expected no less. _

"Are we going to do this here?" Zack asked.

"Yes. I would have liked a more open area; however this is all we have, so we'll have to make do. In any event, much like your last battle, the chances are future battles will be in a confined space anyhow."

"And what about the robots? Won't they come to investigate?"

"Don't worry they won't."

"How can you be so-" Zack cut himself off as a new answer pierced his mind. "You did something didn't you? That's why you went into town."

"That's twice you've shown sparks of cleverness. I must say I'm impressed." Zack glared at her black humor, but remained silent.

Lucile in the meantime had climbed to the stony surface on top of the teleportation alcove, wanting to get as close to the action without being in the way. She would study Rose closely, and use this duel as a way to pick out any flaws in her defense.

"Are you ready to begin now?" Rose asked, although Zack guessed it was more of a pleasantry. They were going to begin now whether he wanted to or not. He rose up and took a brief look around him. The tents had been packed and the fire extinguished, nothing left to impede their duel. Zack slowly moved a hand to his back and removed the spear out of the makeshift scabbard that bound it across his back. Zack moved to one side of the ledge, while Rose moved to the other. Rose's back was facing the town while Zack's faced nothing but the end of the precipice, the yellow mist circling below. Lucile watched from above with giddy interest.

Rose unsheathed her own sword and moved into her usual battle position. Both feet were planted firmly on the ground, her left leg (the one covered by a violet stocking) leading while her right arm wielding the rapier crossed her body like a diagonal L that pointed behind her. Her left arm fell back behind her right leg, deceptively harmless.

"Come" she beckoned. "Show me what you can do." Zack seemed to hesitate for a moment, before dashing forward. _I can already tell he is having reservations _Rose noted as he brought his spear high up in the air before bringing it down in a downward slash. Rose parried it easily, the stepped to his side and drove the face side of her rapier into the side of his neck, downing him instantly. He rolled onto his back but Rose's foot was pressed heavily against his throat, cutting off his air supply.

"Get serious will you!' Rose snapped. "Quit holding back." She released her foot and jumped back a few paces, re-entering her battle stance.

Zack was slow to rise to his feet. "You're serious after all" he said in a low voice, although with a touch of amusement.

"And you'll get really hurt if you're not." No more was said as Zack moved in for a second round. His attacks were quicker this time, sharper, more strategic. She parried the first cleave that shot towards her abdomen, but the unexpected force of the contact nearly sent her reeling. He quickly followed up with a thrust towards her chest, which she evaded narrowly. _He's nearly there _she thought. He began his next barrage, the last strike leaving her monetarily defenseless as the second time she underestimated the strength of the slash which left her front side exposed to a quick follow up sweep.

However he only stood there, giving her a chance to recover.

"You could have got me" she said sharply. "You're still not giving it your all." She thought for a moment before an idea came to her. "Pretend I'm an enemy… Pretend I'm Wen. Visualize and act as if he stood right in front of you. Don't worry about killing me because you won't."

Zack let out a final sigh, and then closed his eyes for a few seconds. When he opened them they were narrow and calculating, stoic and completely devoid of all the doubt and hesitation she had seen moments ago.

_Now it begins. _Instead of his usual head on rush, he only edged closer to her slowly, his spear rose threateningly. In a flash he hurtled his spear towards her. The move took her completely off guard, although she deflected it to the side with her blade. By the time she could figure out his true intentions, he was already upon he, wrapping her up in a vice like hug, pinning her arms. He squeezed her hard, her sternum crushing against the bulkier frame of his, the wind slowly getting drained from her lungs.

"Does this could as a hit?" he spoke with a smile as he wrapped with more strength. She managed to pry one arm free, the one not holding her sword, and she drove her fist into his stomach. He arched backwards, but his grip didn't loosen. She couldn't pull her arm back far enough to get the power necessary to create the desired impact, so instead she drove her elbow into the same spot as hard as she could. This time he did release and he lurched backwards, winded. Rose spotted the opening and acted on instinct as she pulled back and slammed her fist into the side of Zack's face, the sickening crack echoing as he fell onto his hands and knees. Lucile's eye went wide with concern as Rose tried to get some distance, but he recovered quicker then she could have ever imagined. He rolled towards his spear, picked it up and slashed it towards her in one quick fluid movement. She was able to parry it, but only just. He got to his feet once more and together they danced around the long yet thin plateau, Zack's onslaught keeping Rose on the constant defensive. Yet he was only peppering at her defense, waiting for the opportune time to uncoil and strike true.

_He's in a completely different state of mind _Rose noted with rising surprise. _To think he's actually improved this much… _They continued to go blow for blow, Rose's glancing off him every so often, but Zack didn't even seem to feel it. Bits of blood seeped form his mouth where she had struck him as well as his left should where she managed to land a flesh wound, but he kept up the offensive, and it was taking all of Rose's strength and ability to fend him off. Then Zack changed tactics once more, his unorthodox (and reckless) fighting style catching her off guard a second time. She had thrust her blade in a quick stab to his chest, but he used his left hand to grab the end of her sword. The impact cut his hand of course, red blood oozed over his hand and down the tip of her blade, but he held it in place and she was unable to attack. In an instant Zack swung the blunt end of the spear, the bludgeon coming down hard on the section between her neck and shoulder blade. She cried in pain and fell back, releasing the grip on her sword and falling to one knee, one arm grabbing the shoulder that pulsed with pain.

"He won!?" Lucile breathed in awe. Zack stood over her, triumphant, spear in one hand, Rose's rapier in the other. "It's over" Zack said softly, his voice was full of pride.

A small sphere of dark matter formed in the hand not grasping her shoulder. Zack saw it, and what it implied, however he was too slow to act. She tossed tennis ball sized orb towards him, and all he could do was bring up both of the weapons in front of him as a last defense. It crashed into him; the small explosion sending him rolling towards the edge of the cliff. The impact had disarmed him of both weapons, and while it did absorb most of the impact, the shockwave send him hurtling towards the edge, until he disappeared beneath it.

Lucile gasped in horror as she saw him fall beneath the cliff. "Rose, you went too far!" she cried out. She was just about to change into her Dragoon Form and chase after him, but three jets of flame shot up from where he had fallen. They hurtled towards the sky, and then descended towards Rose, three small balls of fire that moved so fast she was nearly consumed by them. She jumped back and they crashed into the spot she was just standing in, but she was still caught in the explosion. She felt more pain as her skin singed, a small cloud of smoke rising off of her. When she opened her eyes she could see Zack hovering back on to the platform, his red Dragoon Armor gleaming.

"So that's what you practiced, magic manipulation" Rose mused loud enough for him to hear. He smiled proudly.

"That sure was close Rosie" he said, almost scornfully. Rose eyed him shrewdly.

"Looks like it's time I got serious. Do you think you can still beat me?"

"Maybe" he replied. In light of his new success, he thought he at least had a shot. Even with the thousands of year's experience, she was still human, and humans made mistakes.

"Hey hey, that's enough!" Lucile cried form above. "Zack landed a hit, the duel is over now!"

They seemed not to hear. Rose's body was engulfed by a momentary purple light before she too shifted into her Dragoon Form. Zack never lost his smile. "Shall we?" he invited, picking up his spear. Rose nodded and retrieved her own weapon.

"It's no longer just a duel anymore" Lucile whispered to herself. "Now it's a struggle for supremacy." She thought she should find a way to stop the fight before someone really did get hurt, yet her feet seemed glued to the stony floor beneath, unable to respond.

They charged at each other in mid flight, the sound of their weapons clashing filling Lucile's ears. Again and again they bashed against each other in what looked like a grueling few seconds of melee before they would separate for a momentary respite, only to repeat the process once more.

"That it, I'll stop them myself then." She began to transform, the silver shimmering light a silhouette before she took shape. Her ethereal bow manifested in her hands and fired a light arrow that sizzled past the two of them before they could engage in another skirmish. They both turned to look at her, and then a thunderous quake that rocked the entire town shook them all. It lasted only a few brief seconds, however the severity of the tremor startled them all.

"… That wasn't me" Lucile added after silence befell the area. Zack looked up at Rose with a look of puzzlement. She was float down to the platform, reverting back at once. Zack followed in suit.

"Something tells me that wasn't just a normal earthquake" Zack said knowingly.

"It wasn't" Rose verified and set her gaze far east. "We have no more time to waste." She turned to Lucile. "Can you restore us quickly?" she asked, although it sounded more a command. "None of the wounds are serious; you should be able to handle it." Lucile stepped over to the two of them, first using her healing capabilities to mend Rose, and then Zack.

"When I was in town I was also able to set our next destination. The teleporter yonder should take us directly to Mayfil."

"Be careful Rose, you still sustained some muscle damage on your shoulder. I was able to sooth the light burns, but I can't yet fix muscle." She nodded absently.

"It's fine. We have more pressing matters to worry about, so we'll have to postpone your examination." She glanced over at Zack. "In any event, if your abilities in any way match his, you'll more than suffice." She made her way towards the small alcove with the teleport device inside. "Let's not waste any more time. Let's go."

What Rose didn't share with her companions is she knew exactly what the tremor meant. She knew it as soon as she felt the surge of arcane energy that accompanied it. It was a warning, a declaration. Melbu had likely nearly, if not finished his plans, and was sending a warning out to the world. He was ready. Ready to take back the world he thought was rightfully his, but perhaps more importantly, was ready for her. Rose had to suppress a shudder that she felt shook her very core. She only hoped it wasn't still too late.

Inside they stepped into the small machine, and Rose announced "to Mayfil." They bodies were encased in the familiar small orb, and the three of them shot towards their fate.

Landing in a room that was almost identical to the one they left in, the three of them were immediately hit with a wave of dread.

"This place" Lucile breathed. "It's… it's..."

"Malevolent" Rose finished. Lucile agreed. It was the exact word she had been looking for to describe it. Already she got the feeling this place doesn't like them. Whether that was usual or perhaps because it's been tampered with, Lucile didn't know.

"This was a place we had thought we had destroyed during the Dragon Campaign. The winglies used to suck souls into here and personally juristic their destinations."

"They really loved to play god, didn't they?" Zack added.

"But with the near extinction of winglies, how can there be any souls left to reap?" Lucile wondered. Rose shrugged.

"Only one way to find out" and on they went.

Nothing could prepare them for the sight in front of them. It was a towering edifice, gothic an archaic. It felt dark and sinister in every sense, looming like an omen. It twisted into all kinds of angels and patterns, giving it the appearance of not one tower but many combined. Small runoffs of green ectoplasm like liquids could be seen, and it looked almost alive. Like Zenebatos, they were on a cat walk like plateau that led to the inner sanctum. Also like Zenebatos they couldn't gleam too far below, however instead of a yellow mist covering it was a mist with shades of light and blue, moving on there on as if it too was alive. Perhaps it was.

They could hear echoes and cries that sent a shiver down both Zack and Lucile's spine.

"The call of the dead" Rose said grimly. It sounded like it was still dying.

"This is…" Zack trailed off; even he couldn't find the word to describe it. It was unlike anything he had ever felt or seen.

Rose let out a grunt of disgust.

"There's out answer" she said softly. "It's not only the souls of dead winglies that are being brought here; it's also the souls of dead humans as well."

"Then… there's no limit to how many souls he can trap" Zack muttered in disbelief.

"Let's go" Lucile edged, her voice dry. She looked pale, as if death was close to claiming her as well. "The quicker we get this done, the quicker we can get out." She tried to walk but fell to her knees.

"Lucie what's wrong!?" Zack asked as he put an arm around her to help her back up."

"It's worse for her, being the Silver White Dragoon knight" Rose explained. "Because of who she is, she cannot simply ignore the voices of the dammed. They cling to her, as if the last beacon of life." Lucile shuttered again. She swore she could feel the spirits touching her. She felt a yearning deep within her to help them, to free them.

"They must be freed" she said in the same dry voice. "This… is too terrible. Being trapped against your will, never allowed to move on. It's… it's…" she broke down into incomprehensible sobs, tears filling her eyes.

"She is also more sensitive to the emotions of the dead as well. She can feel their pain, their anguish, their torment. It's like a living nightmare to her."

Zack looked at her sympathetically, keeping a firm hand on her shoulder for support. "Sounds like a gift as well as a curse" he muttered. "Are you sure you can continue?"

Lucile wiped away the remnants of her tears and stood up, her eyes burning with a new determination. "I'm fine, I'll manage" she said. "I must free them; let them pass on to the void where they can finally rest in peace." It was more than a statement, it was a promise. "I will release you all!" she cried to them, and Zack fancied he could hear the souls react, almost pleading.

"Then let us loiter no longer" Rose spoke. And together they entered the first floor of the tower.

"Wen!' Zack cried in surprise and fury. There he was, standing on the other end of the small circular room. There was a small cylinder machine attached to the roof at the center of the room and under it Rose could feet a pull of swirling energy.

"You made it!" Wen spoke through a gleaming smile. He was standing opposite them, in front of the exit door. "I knew you would."

"You bastard, do you tire of running and have chosen to face us?" Zack asked, unsheathing his spear.

"Now now, let's not get _too _hasty now. I have a special guest!"

The magical energy magnified and soon it began to take shape. A lime colored shadow at first, but then it began to take shape in the center of the room.

_It's a humanoid figure _Rose noted. Then other details became prominent, although it retained the light green ethereal visage. A long haired man clad in plate armor equipped with a spear. After the final details like the drape that hung like a cape form his back spawned, Rose recognized with a sick kind of awareness who it really was.

"Albert!" Rose exclaimed with horror. Wen had disappeared while their attention had been diverted; however the echoes of his sadistic laughter could still be heard loud and clear.


	50. Chapter 50

**Chapter 50**

A small green barrier began to slither up from the boundaries of the small room. Rose had grabbed Lucile's attention and both of them jumped back out of the way of the growing green sheet, but Zack hadn't been too fast to catch on. Before he could realize what was happening, the barrier of green had erected, separating Rose and Lucile from Zack. A cold staring Albert began to advance.

"Destroy it!" Lucile begged Rose. Rose struck the green substance with her sword, but it was like hitting a brick wall.

"Zack, it should only be an illusion or spirit of some sort, it shouldn't be able to hurt you."

"Yeah right, where have I heard that one before" Zack replied, reading his own spear. The jade colored Albert moved like a flash, extending the end of the blunt side of the pole arm. It smashed into the center of Zack's chest, sending him sprawling to the ground, coughing furiously.

"Zack!" Rose called. Albert loomed over him, like a predator stalking its wounded prey. Rose took a step back and shot a barrage of black magic at the barrier. The blackened flames burned on the green curtain that prevented them access from helping their friend; however it did little to damage it.

Zack rolled on to his side and stabbed out his own spear. The dead king blocked it effortlessly.

"He's… becoming more human" Lucile noted as the green around Albert faded, leaving behind a more humanistic appearance. Milky skin began to appear as well as more defined eyes, mouth and chin.

_The wall looks almost alive… as if…! _A startling realization hit Rose. "The barrier is made up of souls" she said, her tone full of awe. "It's as if the city itself is against us, repelling us."

"What can you do?" Lucile asked, watching on as Zack time after time narrowly missed what would be fatal blows.

"Nothing" Rose said in resignation. "My black magic will do us little help here." Lucile slammed her fist into the bed of souls. "Dammit! He needs our help!"

"We can help him not by losing your temperament but by analyzing the fight, giving him hints and clues that he may not see." Her eyes narrowed, focusing on the battle, looking for any openings. "Usually physical manifestations of spirits are somehow controlled, manipulated. If you can find any abnormality, tell him right away."

"Gah" Zack moaned as the edge of Albert's spear gashed his left arm. It had glanced off his spar for the most part, leaving only a superficial wound, but it was clear he was utterly outmatched. "And by my own weapon" he muttered dejectedly.

"Don't give up Zack!' Lucile cheered. Zack smiled at the encouragement.

"Don't plan to." He launched another offensive, striking with speed, strength and precision that even Rose had to admire. Albert began to move backwards, the force of Zack's barrage sending him into a retreat. But for all his efforts, he finally found a reward when he cleaved Albert's spear in two, leaving the ghost unarmed. Zack didn't hesitate a moment to take advantage of the opportunity and propelled his spear into Albert's stomach. It made a sickeningly human ripping sound as the end of the spear tore through his lower torso, despite being undead.

Everything seemed to freeze for a few seconds, like time slowed down to almost a standstill. Then, all in one motion before Zack could even begin to celebrate, Albert's forehead smashed into the bridge of Zack's nose. The ear piercing sound of breaking bones and cartilage broke the silence, and Zack fell backwards, groaning when his back hit the floor.

"He didn't die… or… disappear!?" Lucile said in horror.

"As I suspected, something is behind this. He is somehow being controlled…"

Zack's face was covered in blood; it seeped into his swollen and teary eyes, poured out of his nose and into mouth, he even fancied it had somehow entered his ears. All he could see, smell and taste was his own blood, and the sensation of an impending defeat.

A rough hand clamped around his throat and lifted him off the ground as if he weighed no more than a feather. The hand suspended him in air, feet dangling as Albert tightened the grip across his esophagus, squeezing the life out of him. In that quick maneuver where Albert swooped down to pick up his prey, he revealed a deadly secret, to which Rose's trained eyes picked up on at once.

"There it is!" Rose yelled triumphant. As Albert's cape fell askew momentarily, she could see what was really pulling the strings. "Zack, hear me well!" her voice took a note of command, and Zack's head moved vaguely in her direction. "On his back, strike for his back!"

Only part of what Rose said had registered in Zack's wavering mind, but by the luck of the gods it was the only piece of information that mattered. He took her meaning at once, and put forth a final struggle. He flailed like mad, bashing the arm that held him aloft. It seemed to do little effect, but Zack's eyes were nearly swollen shut, not to mention the blood the skewed the rest of his vision. He may as well be fighting in the dark. But somehow, despite his suffocation and the immense pain he was in, he was able to detach himself and enter a state of tranquility. He focused with his mind, and slowly the fire from within his dark recesses ignited, and with it he was able to bring it into the plain of existence and set his opponents arm aflame.

Albert recoiled, letting Zack topple to the ground. Even with half of his arm on fire, the once Jade Dragoon seemed to show no indication of pain. His stare was still as cold and emotionless, devoid of any humanistic feelings.

Zack wiped the blood out of his eyes to give himself a small bit of blurred vision. Yet once more time seemed to slow to him, like every second passed as a minute. Gathering what was left of his wits, he grabbed on to the pike that was still in lodged into Albert's chest, tore it out and with a heave jabbed at another part of his torso, the spear tearing through his flesh and out the other end once more. Again and again he did it, making sure to penetrate his front and hit whatever was behind. He had no way of accurately seeing or knowing where or what he was supposed to hit, but if he made enough holes through Albert's body, he thought he should get lucky.

And lucky he was. After the fifth attempt the body dispersed into a cloud of green vapor. As if on cue, the wall of souls dispersed as well.

They both ran to their fallen comrade, who was on his knees. Lucile began to treat his wounds at once, yet before Rose got to him, through the small blanket of mist that came from the spirit departure, she saw something small and insect like scuttle across towards the exit. Rose drew her sword, scanned the room for a moment and threw her sword towards the exit door. It stuck into the ground, trapping a small creature that resembled a kind of spider beneath it. Lucile looked up in shock.

"How did you see… wait, more importantly, what is that!?" she pointed to the ebony colored parasite. It was around the size of a hand, eight legs sprouting from the side of its small abdomen, giving it the appearance of a sort of arachnid. Even under Rose's blade, it squirmed for a small time, trying to get free before it died.

"It's what caused the illusion of Albert. A trick of Wen no doubt."

Lucile looked at Rose questioningly, but went back to work on mending Zack's broken nose.

"It's called a Soul Catcher. They are able look into the minds of people sift through their memories and call upon a spirit to incarnate a form that is usually close to them." She paused. "They are foul parasites, malicious and prone to torment their prey. They only reside here in Mayfil because they can call upon the lost souls they need to create the form of whatever they choose to imitate. However once their secret is known, they are usually easy to kill. It probably figured out by Zack's sudden targeting of the back of Albert that he knew, and as a last ditch effort tried to escape."

A light moan escaped Zack's lips.

"How are you?" Lucile asked.

"Better" he said. "Not so much blood in my mouth anymore." Lucile nodded.

"I've done all I can for your nose, the bleeding is stifled and most of the cartilage is fixed, although the break itself I can only place back the fragmented parts. You'll have to wait till the body heals it naturally before it'll be back to one hundred percent. However I will be able to fix the swelling in your eyes."

As the White Silver Dragoon Knight moved on to her next task, Rose sat on the opposite side of Zack and began to talk. "You did really well there" she complimented. Zack snorted a half painful laughter.

"You're actually complimenting my fighting abilities?" Rose raised an eyebrow.

"I'm saying you did well for the typical brawler you are" she amended quickly.

"Had to go and ruin it, didn't you?" Zack replied in mock hurt. Rose rolled her eyes.

"Done" Lucile announced. When Zack opened his eyes he was relieved to find his vision was full once more.

"Thanks" he said. "What would I do without you?" He gave his a playful pat on the back. She shrugged, choosing not to be swept up in his humor. Zack tried to rise to his feet, although he found his body was still weak and heavy. Yet there were still things to do, battles to fight, and he'd be damned if he was going to sit any of them out.

"Ready?" Rose asked him. He nodded, flashing a quick smile. Rose was still able to detect the pain he was surpassing behind it however, and she hoped that it wouldn't lead to his death. "Stay near me" she ordered.

"I can take care of myself" he said with a hint of stubbornness.

"But you're injured, and will be an easy target. You're not doing us nor yourself any favours trying to act herculean. A smart person knows when his injured, and when to play it safe." Zack grunted, feeling like he was being treated like a child but agreed all the same. And together, they exited the room and moved on to the other battles that awaited them.

* * *

As they traversed the more open part of Mayfil, it was became strikingly reminiscent of Aglis, the feeling of being confined, almost like a tomb, and much to Lucile's displeasure, the constant use of teleportation to go from platform to platform and room to room. Certain areas that appeared inaccessible due to large gaps between platforms were so by beams of ethereal bridges. As they crossed, Lucile expressed on several occasion her distrust for them. "What if they stop working or it's a trap?" she had asked as she tried to peer down to the bottom of the tower. Mists of blue and green still obscured the view, and she felt her body shiver. Many unknown sigils and ectoplasm like liquids were spread across the tower, giving it a haunting atmosphere. "What if we were to plummet?"

"Then we'd join the growing numbers of lost souls" Rose replied causally. She cleared her throat audibly.

They crossed two more rooms identical to the first, and there was no sign of Wen or any other dangers. The howls of the dead could still be heard from around them, and to Zack and Lucile, that was far worse than any battle they may await them. _Gods, how could the winglies stand this?_ Lucile wondered. She wrapped her arms across her chest and began to shiver, as if cold. Her body was completely warm however.

Then the trio came across a large room different from the others. It stood out like a square, and on the inside they were present with a large square mat made up of other small squares, not so unlike a chess board. The small black lines that made up the board gleamed indifferently as small purple flakes of energy that made Lucile think of stars of small meteorites shot out from the seemingly endless abyss that lurked below. Once the small bits of energy made contact with one of the smaller square nodes it would flicker red for a few seconds before vanishing. Thin, arched looking doorways (or what Lucile assumed were doorways or some kind of entryway to another room, there was no actual door so to speak) sat all around them. To on the left side of the squared board, to on the opposite side and the one they just entered in. to their left a small stony ledge sat aloft in al L shape, a small green teleport device gleaming at the end of it.

Then Wen appeared once more, standing in the closest archway (the one to their right). He smiled pleasantly at them.

"And so you continue to amaze." He was looking straight at Zack.

"Cut the crap" Rose snapped. "Are you going to fight us this time, or continue to run?"

"So hasty" Muttered the blonde veteran. His gaze fell once more on Zack, almost tauntingly. "Well, I'm right here, so if you want me, come and get me."

"I've had enough of listening to this jackass" Zack said as began to move towards the mat of small squares. Rose was able to stop him before he could get to far, reaching her arm out in front of him and holding his shirt, forcing him to a stop.

"Take one step on beyond this platform and you'll plummet to your death" she said as she released him. Zack's eyes widened.

"You mean you can fall through that?" he asked, puzzled. "Then how did he get there?"

Wen meanwhile let out a fake and over exaggerated moan. "You ruined it. He would have been foolish enough to fall right though."

Zack cursed himself for his over eagerness. He should have by now expected trickery; after all it was what Wen was best at.

"See when the small shards of light come into contact with one of those squares, it lights up momentarily? That's our only way across. They only stay solid for a few seconds though" Rose explained.

"Why have something as complicated as this?" Zack wondered aloud.

"It's just a safety precaution" Wen chimed in, as if he was also a part of a friendly conversation. "We've had several assaults on Mayfil since it was first constructed, and it would prove very problematic if it were to fall into another species' hands. So we took measures of security. To us, who are all born to fly, this proves to be no problem, however to human land dwellers like yourselves, one wrong step could prove rather fatal. Of course, it was poorly done in my view, especially to you Dragoon Knights who can just… fly." He chuckled. "Come! I have something interesting for you." And with that he disappeared into the nearby alcove.

"Probably another trap" Lucile muttered unhappily.

"Yet do we have a choice but to follow him?" Zack added, feeling helpless. "Damn it, he's playing us like fools."

"Keep your head" Rose reminded. "He's a master above all at mind games, never forget that." She glanced ahead. "Let's move forward."

"We're going to cross that by foot?" Lucile asked, not quite being able to completely mask her worry. Rose shook her head.

"I don't trust it for a moment. I'll transform and fly us both over." Zack protested.

"It takes a whole lot of energy to force a transformation, you taught us both that. The last thing we need right now is a fatigued Rose, so let me do it."

"You're already injured for one, and two do you have the energy left, or the mastery to force a transformation outside battle?"

Zack remained silent then dropped his head in resignation. Neither he nor Lucile had yet gained the experience or discipline to transform outside battle; they were accustomed to feeding off the adrenaline and will to survive to act as their way point. Rose meanwhile began to transform.

"Will you be able to take the two of us?" Lucile asked.

"That won't be a problem. Just hold on to my arm." Rose glided just above her two companions, then secured a strong grip with one of their hands. "Hold on" she said, and then took off with a mighty bat of her wings.

As short as the trip was, as soon as she landed them on the small alcove leading to the next room, she felt weariness flood her. Even with the extra strength her dragoon powers granted her, flying in the air carrying two grown people at a time taxed her greatly. But that wasn't all she thought was sapping her strength. _I feel my energy being leeched just being here _she thought between pants. She reverted immediately in hopes to alleviate some of the pressure, but once she did she found it helped only little. She felt on the verge of exhaustion, and even given how tough it is to change into a knight while outside combat, the strain shouldn't be this large.

"Perhaps we should take a breather" Zack suggested. Rose waved the idea off.

"I only want to be here as long as I have to be. Let's not loiter." And before anymore could be said, she entered the next room, leading as she always did. Zack threw Lucile a sidelong glance, and she took the meaning immediately. She was in a hurry to get out, almost to the point of overzealous. Rose had never been slow, but she had never rushed ahead blindly without properly assessing the situation either. Rushing left one vulnerable to mistakes she had always taught them, yet she was disregarding that and the high chance of another trap. Something was off, and if they weren't careful, they'd be killed by it. Lucile nodded, and two of them rushed ahead to catch up to their leader, putting their megrims, at least for the moment, aside.

They entered a round tunnel like room, their feet sinking into the shallow water that blanketed the ground. Glints of nether could be seen shimmering, and Lucile's skin crawled with repulsion. What fel magic could do this?

In the center of the circular room mounted a small mount with long, flat globe of green energy that gloated upward, getting harvested by the dark, machine that looked like an upside down pyramid.

It was a flash, a flash so quick Zack wasn't able to react in the slightest before it impacted him in the stomach, dropping him to his knees in a splutter of coughs. The figure quickly turned, the sprung fourth again at an unbelievable speed, darting straight for Rose.

Rose reflexes however were a little sharper then Zack, and with the extended bit of time she was able to predict the movement at the last second. She jumped sideways, only just missing the punch that was intended to her by the old, tanned strange, but he swirled around and struck again so fast Rose she hadn't landed from her evading jump yet. It struck her torso also, dropping her in much the same fashion Zack had. Rose cursed inwardly. _He predicted that movement from the start. _

"Master Haschel!?" Lucile shrieked as the purpled man with a dark moustache, the man known as Haschel during his life, turned to her and stared at her without a trace of emotion. It was only after Rose heard Lucile's cry that it registered to her that it was Haschel. Somehow, someway her old companion was standing in front of them, now as an enemy. She tried to will herself to her feet but her limbs didn't respond. She felt like a massive mountain was strapped to her, and it took all of her strength just to breath. She turned her head just a little to spot Zack, and by the look of it she he was in the same position she was.

"What.. happened?" she asked, but it came out weak and nearly unheard.

"He used one of Rouge's sacred techniques, called the Forbidden Palm. It's one of the hardest moves to master, but upon contact, he releases his chi into their body, interfering with the brain messages. It's not usually fatal, but it will leave the victim paralyzed for quite some time." Her tone was full of fear. "How are you alive master Haschel?" He didn't respond, only looked at her with that emptiness. Lucile studied her old master and noticed some peculiarities. He was… different. He looked the same, from his creased brow to his dark moustache… but it was different, almost like looking at an identical twin, they look similar at a glance, but if you inspect close enough you can find varying differences.

"What… is this?" she gasped in horror.

"You'll find this fight a little different then the last" a voice intruded, piercing Lucile's inner confusion. "This is the real Haschel in a living body, no tricks or Soul Catcher's here." Lucile could detect the twisted hilarity dripping off each word. She took a hesitant step back when Haschel assumed a fighting position, one fist near his side and the other out in front of him in the traditional Rouge Martial Arts Stance. Lucile glanced behind her, hoping that somehow Rose or Zack would shake the technique and would be able to lend some assistance, but they were still on their knees. She was effectively on her own in this battle.

Haschel launched himself towards his former student, accelerating at a speed almost impossible to detect. Lucile brought her arms up in defense, only just being able to fend the storm of blows. He was savage in his assault, striking with the trained precision of the master he was reputed to be. The White Dragoon Knight couldn't even find the time between attacks to mount any sort of counter, she was forced into a permanent defense. Deciding to try and find some room between the two, she moved rolled backwards towards the entrance.

"Wen you bastard!' she cried, but when she looked in his direction he was gone.

"Typical" she muttered. Haschel approached her again, and she moved away, keeping a safe distance between her and her opponent. There was no way she could best him in combat, he was the greatest martial artist in all of the school's history. That only left her dragoon powers…

She began to focus, an aura of white energy surrounding her. Yet before she could completely transform, Haschel was on the move again, as if he could sense that letting her achieve her Dragoon form would spell the end of him.

Lucky even in her deep focus she had the wherewithal to evade the oncoming attack. As a result she lapsed in concentration and the radiating silver light dispersed. She cursed inwardly. He was obviously not going to let her transform under any circumstances.

Rose tried to move, but again to no avail. Her body simply refused to comply with her will. She could only watch helplessly as Lucile had to endure the brutal onslaught alone.

Lucile wasn't lucky enough to get out of the second barrage uninjured. She received a swift knock to the side of the head as well as numerous body shots. Each hit felt like a hammer, the force of the impact rippling across her entire body.

"Dammit I can't keep this up!" Lucile shirked. It took all her ability just to defend, and even with that she was slowly failing. He was just too strong; she needed to gain some sort of distance.

"Stay calm and use your head" Rose encouraged, although it came out hoarse and without much authority. But Rose was right; losing her composure now will only ensure a quick defeat. An idea entered her mind.

She rushed Haschel this time, and it seemed the sudden switch from defense to offense gave her a small window of opportunity to attack a surprised Haschel. She locked her hands with his, cementing them in a sort of strength struggle, both pushing back on their back legs trying to gain an advantage. She closed her eyes and drew forth a shimmer of light energy that dazzled in both of her hands. The energy, curative by nature, had an adverse effect. It burned Hashel's hand as if it was fire, and he recoiled with a grunt of pain. She was right; her white magic had an opposite effect on the undead. Excellent, she finally had a weakness to exploit.

The ether of light covered her hands like a glove, and she rushed him, using all she knew. Haschel, or at least the vessel who resembled Haschel, she knew it couldn't be the real him, wasn't foolish enough to be caught twice. He avoided the blows with evasive maneuvers not thought possible from someone of his age. Not once was she able to land a hit on him, he stepped, rolled and flipped out of the way with a flexibility she couldn't believe. Then he countered in an instant, his fist driving right into her stomach. She dropped to her knees immediately, spluttering uncontrollably.

Haschel lifted up his right leg above her head, ready to deliver the final blow. Lucile launched herself from her semi prone state back to her feet, wrapping her arms around the off balanced martial arts master. Lucile's body enveloped in the same white light, burning Haschel as he screamed in agony. She didn't release her hug, crying "I'm sorry master!" but never relenting. Soon they both glowed, and then Haschel fell, lifeless. Lucile fell to her knees gasping heavily.

"I… did it" she said, panting. Slowly she made her way towards Rose and Zack. "Are you both okay?" They both nodded, although basic mobility still escaped them. "I'll try and do what I can, although it won't be much." She started on Rose, using her magic to try and ease her muscles locked up muscles. It did little as she Lucile expected, but it did make Rose's breathing easier. It was a small miracle, but not an unwelcomed one.

Standing up and moving towards Zack a few meters away, she stopped when a flash of glimmering light sparked before her eyes. Small pyres of gray flickered briefly before going out, only to repeat the process like a like a pulse. She turned to Hashel's body, and recoiled when she saw the transformation taking place. Embers of light shrouded him, his skin slowly singeing away. What was left behind was a hard crust, molded around the vessels bone. He roared in agony as two dark wings sprouted out of his back, making a sickening crunch as it broke the skin. His face turned into a black mask his eyes devoid of any colour. His screaming stopped and he froze, as if unsure.

"…What the hell is _that_!?" Lucile gasped.

"An abomination" Rose said from behind her, her voice a little stronger now. "That's what happens when you force the souls of the dead back into life; they can twist and corrupt the body. However being here has amplified the effect, the soul has degenerated into chaos, never able to find rest."

It was off like a bullet, arching its back with a flexibility none of them could believe. It shot out like a cat, rushing on all floors. It reached out its hand and pawed down, the nails, which had turned into hawk like talons, slashed her chest, the claws strong enough to rip through her mighty Dragoon Armour. Lucile then noticed with far away observation that the crusty skin had hardened into small shell. His skull had grown black horns, his skull reshaped in a way that looked in no way human. As Lucile fell backwards towards the ground, her mind wavering as the blackness came closer, she thought _Master Haschel… what demon have they made you become?_ The thud that followed as her body hit the ground was emphatic.

Rose looked on in horror. She was still alive, if only just, but her chest was covered in blood and she was fading fast. The demon then raised its arm in the air, its claws waving threateningly. Apparently it wasn't finished yet.

"Let her be!" Rose cried, and with all her strength she forced herself to transform, for the second time under extenuating circumstances. The power of the dragoon spirit that now runs through her body was able to cancel out the martial arts master's chi, but at a heavy price. The forced taken to transform her unwilling body struck her immediately, and for a moment she feared she would pass out.

"I'll fight you now." She withdrew her sword and readied herself, although internally she wondered if she could even move let alone fight. The demon looked at her, then with a grunt it gave Lucile an almighty kicked that send her skimming across the ground. It turned to face Rose.

"…What are you doing Rose?" A physically exhausted Zack asked. She ignored him, trying to regulate her breathing and focus her mind. This thing was quick, and it would only take one momentary lapse and she could have the same fate as Lucile, but that wasn't the worrying part. She had never seen something like this, she knew nothing about it and couldn't know what to expect. As bad as it that it's that fast, at least she knows and can prepare. The monster you knew was always preferable to the monster you didn't. If she's even a little-

It arched again and made its move. It shot at her much like it did Lucile, but this time she could defend it with her blade. It howled demonically and pushed her back with incredible force. It latched on to her hands, not letting her get any separation. She tried to drive her boot into the creature, but it had seemingly no effect. It howled once more, then an explosion of white light filled the area they were struggling. It was blinding, and engulfed the room entirely. After that…. It all went blank.

* * *

Wow, been a while since an update I know. I'm finding less and less time to write unfortunately (I miss being back at school, where I had more time then I knew what to do with). But I do intent to see this story to the end, so it will get finished. Anyway hope you enoy the chapter :)

Michael.


	51. Chapter 51

**Chapter 51**

The light felt soothing and irritating at the same time. Rose closed her eyes, shielding her face with her free hand, thinking _this is it, this is the end…_

But time only seemed to stand still. The light, while she couldn't see, seemed to imprint in her mind, a light that was illuminating and scourging. She felt her body fall, yet the impact was secondary. She was still dazzled by the light. Faintly, she could hear someone call her name in worry. She felt tired, ever so tired. She was probably dying anyway, so drifting into a slumber at this point didn't seem so bad…

The calling became more insistence, and she groaned in annoyance. Why wouldn't they let her be? She felt her body being shaken and with a final grunt she thought _fine I'll get up!_

She tried to open her eyes but found she couldn't. They were glued shut. Her body was non-responsive as well. She felt lethargic to the point of paralysis. Her shaking became more violent, the cry for her to wake up more urgent.

_Wake up? _Rose thoughtuninterestedly. So she wasn't dead, or at least she didn't think so, but then again perhaps when you die all you hear is a calling voice. She was wondering if next it would beg her to come into the light, and she found with a dull kind of recognition how black her humor really was. Giving herself an almighty mental heave, she opened her eyes.

"Rose, wake up dammit, c'mon!" Zack called, his voice full of hysteria. "We need to help Lucile!"

Rose looked up, her eyes bleary for a moment. "What… what happened?" she asked softly. Zack yelled angrily.

"Dammit get your wits about you, for Lucile's sake! I've tried to stop the bleeding but her wounds are critical, she barely conscious! We need to help her!"

The event of the fight flooded her mind, and when comprehension dawned, she sat up quickly. A little too quickly it seemed, and she doubled over, almost falling unconscious again. Her body was weak, too weak to even move at this point.

"I can't do anything at the moment" she admitted with frustration. Zack bashed the glowing floor with his hands. "What do we do Rose!? She's fucking dying, help me here!" Tears were forming in his eyes as he ran over to Lucile a few meters away. He had stripped off his top and used it to bind the wounds over her chest, yet it did little. Her eyes were glazed over, her breathing swapping between deep heavy breathing and light struggled gasps for air.

Rose looked over at the demon; only it was now petrified completely, shelled in a granite like stone texture that made it appear to be a statue. She diverted her attention. Lucile was the primary focus here now.

"Shut up and listen to me, lest you want her to perish!" Rose commanded. Zack eyed her sharply, than sighed a breath of relief. Rose was back in action.

"I can't move, I'm too weak, I need you to drag me over to her so I can inspect the wounds." Zack nodded and picked her up, then sat her down next to the critical Lucile. Rose inspected the three deep lines that gashed over her chest, than muttered something inaudible.

"She's still in her Dragoon Armour, we have hope." She said. "If she reverts, all is lost. She's trying to draw upon her healing abilities. However the wounds are too deep, she dying and losing her strength quickly. She needs help in drawing out her Dragoon Spirit's healing energy." She paused. "I have no energy to give so I'm no good; you're going to have to do it."

Zack looked at her. "Just tell me how."

"I'll talk you through it. Put your hand on her body, close your eyes, and concentrate." Zack nodded, propped himself on his knees and planted a hand under her chest.

"Now what?" he asked, eyes closed.

"You're going to transfer your energy to hers, so she has resources to pull the energy of her spirit. So you'll be her new energy pool. However be careful Zack, her instinct will be to pull all she can, even if it means to suck you dry. If the wound is too fatal and she is leeching too much, you'll have to pull out or else you'll die as well, understand?"

"Just tell me how" he replied.

"Not until you promise me you'll cut it if you're endangered, there's no point throwing your life away as well okay?"

He grunted in impatiently. "We need to hurry, every second counts!"

"I'll not have two deaths! Promise or I'll not help you!"

He eyed her with anger, contempt and alarm, and then agreed. "Fine, I promise."

"Now close your eyes and concentrate. "You're going to need to bridge a mental connection between the two of you. She may put up some resistance if you probe, but in her state I don't think it'll be a problem.

"Yes yes let's get on with it" Zack encouraged.

"Listen, if you don't clear your mind from everything and take this seriously you'll kill both of you. This is delicate; you don't want to damage her mind alright? Now listen to me, and do as I say, when I say, got it!?" Rose ordered. He nodded silently.

"Now push, slowly and carefully, you'll be looking for an entrance into her mind. You'll know it when you see it."

Zack furrowed his brow in concentration. After a minute he gasped, then said "I think I have it."

"Now you're going to want to create an access point from her mind to yours, so she can use your energy. But be careful, because in her state her body is going to assault your power hard and fast. Be prepared, it'll be an exhausting ordeal. Remember: cut it if it gets bad."

Zack agreed, and then tried to bridge a kind of connection. He found it hard, his lack of mastery over this aspect of mental training made him take nearly six minutes before he was able to finally make the bridge.

Then it hit him like a boulder. He felt his very essence being leeched, and nothing Rose said could prepare him for it. It was impossible to explain the process, but he best thought it like being sucked into a black hole little by little, unable to move or pull away.

Rose could see his straggle. His brow was covered in sweat and his breathing became erratic. A small radiant glint of light centered on her three gashes, and as she had predicted it worked. However the question was would Zack have the necessary energy pool to pull it off?

It went on for several minutes, and Rose became increasingly worried. It had to be close to Zack's limits, if it didn't already exceed it. At this rate Lucile would start pulling from his life force directly. Several more minutes expired, and Lucile looked noticeably better. Colour had returned to her cheeks, and her bleeding had almost halted. Zack meanwhile was the opposite, he become very pale, his body was drenched in sweat and his breath became more haggard and sporadic with every passing second.

"Zack, that's enough, she should be okay, pull out." She ordered, yet Zack gave no response. She said it again, and when no reply was forthcoming she began to shake him.

"Zack, stop it now!"

"…Rose… I can't… break it…" he said, his voice raspy and fatigued. _Shit, she won't let him stop it!_ She should have anticipated this, with Lucile's body on the verge of death it would grip any energy source possible and not let go. Rose would have to intervene to break it.

She willed her body to her knees and crawled to Zack's hand. She gripped it with two of her and tried to pull the hand away, breaking the physical link. But either she was to weak, or Lucile too strong (she had an idea it was a bit of both), and she realized with frantic awareness she couldn't stop it. She was going to suck every drop of his life force. _The only way is if I break it mentally _she thought, then she put a hand on Lucile's torso (below Zack's), then searched for their link. She found it, and she felt the titanic struggle from both ends, one grasping for their one hope of survival, the other trying get away to ensure their own hopes of survival.

_What have I done? _She thought absently, then tried to impose herself to sever the tie. She was rejected by a strong force, as if she had hit a barrier. He tried again and again to get between them but to no avail, she was too weak and they were too strong. Grunting with frustration she withdrew and tried again to break the contact by physical means. But In the end, Lucile and Zack were locked in a mental duel, and nothing she could do would stop it. Another idea dawned on her.

_It'll probably kill me to do this as well, but…. _She put a hand on Zack's back, trying to find a back entry where he could then take what little energy she had left. It wasn't much, but she had to try.

Suddenly she felt a rejection and she was kicked out of his mind entirely.

"…Stay out of it… I have this under control…"

Rose looked at him in amazement. He had regulated his breathing, and he looked like he was in control. Could it be that he is still willfully giving Lucile energy? How? By all rights he should be sucked dry, hell; even at full strength she would be dead by now.

She looked at Lucile, and her wounds looked no more than scratches. Had it not been for the blood stains that trickled from her chest and mouth, one would think she was slumbering.

Then Zack opened his eyes, and the faint light dispersed. Zack gave rose the thumbs up, and while he looked a little worse for wear, he was alright.

_His energy pool is enormous, I've never seen anything like it _Rose thought with awe. To have lent that much energy to a dying person, then still be alive, let alone conscious, is nothing short of remarkable. _In all my years, no one has had such a reserve of energy…. That is his true strength, endurance. He has that in spades_.

Lucile's form changed back to normal, and Zack glanced at Rose in alarm.

"What happened? Is she okay!?"

"Settle yourself, its fine. She has no more reason to be in her Dragoon Form, it's just a pointless strain now. Just give her time to rest, she should be fine."

Zack let out a sigh, then fell onto his back. "That was an experience I'll never forget."

"You did well." Rose remarked. "No, that's not fair, you did brilliantly. If not for you, than Lucile would surely be dead by now."

Zack let out a small chuckle. Rose eyed him fatly.

"What?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. Zack shook his head.

"Nothing… I'm just still not used to you giving me compliments."

She felt a hot reply come to her lips, then suppressed it with a shake of her head. It was his moment after all.

Then Zack's face turned stern. "You are as reckless as I am. Your intervention could have caused us all irreparable damage or worse. You tell me I need to learn my own limits and not let emotions cloud better judgment, yet you did the opposite. You have to lead by example, because whether you like it or not, you are our leader, spiritually and physically."

Rose was shocked at his lecture. But he continued before she could repute the statement.

You need to put more trust in us, because when it comes down to it we are your support. You can't do everything yourself rose, you-"

"I did what I thought I had to do. To me you were killing yourself, and I was not about to let you die as well" Rose injected hotly.

"You needed to trust me. Your presence almost caused me to lapse concentration, not only that but I had to expend extra energy to make sure you stayed out of the struggle. You are in no shape to impose yourself, even you said so yourself. In the end, out of the three of us you were the closest to dying, do you realize that? Had I not kept you out, Lucile would have dragged the small energy you had left as well."

Rose was shocked into a momentary silence. She could find no reasonable retort. However what she could do, or at least the inner voice of her mind, was find an irrational one.

_You love him. _It wasn't a new notion to her of course, but she didn't really grasp how deep it was until now. For her to act on impulse and pure emotion, acts she had spent a millennia teaching herself to detach… Her mind flickered to the memory of the kiss they shared under the moonlight, and her body began to pulse with a warm, radiating heat. She quelled the thought almost as quickly as it had come. _This is neither the place nor time_ she scolded, and then turned her attention to more pressing matters.

"What happened to the demon?" Rose asked, changing the subject.

"Lucile shot it with an arrow. I don't know how she did it, but it did that to it" Zack pointed to the monster, now no more than a rocky sculpture.

"Will it stay like that?' Zack asked a little concerned.

"Yes, it's been purified, it'll stay like that for as long as this place holds" Rose affirmed, and Zack sighed inwardly. The last thing they needed was another battle, especially against that. Meanwhile Rose, who had been pondering what to do for the last few moments, decided on the next course of action.

"We will have to rest here" Rose said unhappily.

"I can try and lend you some energy while I carry Lucile. I don't like the idea of resting here, we're sitting ducks."

"No, you're as exhausted as I am that I can tell. What you did was a miracle, a herculean effort even, but it will have a high price to pay. If we continue on like this we're apt to die, and die quickly.

"But we're as likely to die being here as-"

"It's our only option" she cut in. "I don't like the idea anymore then you do, trust me, and we'll only rest the bare minimum, a couple of hours. But we simply can't push on, I can barely stand, Lucile is incapacitated and you aren't much better.

"I'm fine, I can carry on" he assured as he got to his feet. A wave of intense nausea hit him so hard and suddenly he could only double over and vomit.

"See? You need to be wary of your own limits" Rose said behind a small smile. She knew though that the best way to know that was to test that limit yourself. When Zack regain some semblance of control he flopped on his knees and conceded.

"Fine, you're right, we have to rest. But only as much as we have to, not a moment longer." Rose nodded.

"Now, let's rest up." And while Zack thought with the eerie backdrop and the haunting noises of the dead behind he never could fall asleep, he was out cold within three minutes.

* * *

Zack awoke with a hard shake, and when he opened a weary eye he saw Rose over him, trying to bring him back to consciousness. He moaned and wanted nothing more than to swat her away and sleep for another three days, but once he became aware of their situation again, he rose to a sitting position.

"How long have we been out?" he asked.

"I can't tell, but I'd say more than a few hours." Zack groaned. "I feel more tired now then when I did before I slept."

"We can't afford to get any more rest. Not only that, but I think someone was here while we were dozing." She pointed to the petrified demon, or at least where it used to be. It was missing now, gone like a dream. For a moment Rose had to remind herself it wasn't just that, a passing dream or imagining.

"Shit" Zack cursed. "I think you're right." He pondered groggily for a moment. "We would have been defenseless; it was the perfect opportunity for a coup de grace. Why were we left unharmed if someone was in here?"

Rose shrugged. "I know as much as you do." Zack turned to see Lucile, still sleeping quietly.

"She hasn't woken?"

"No, at least not since I've been up. She probably won't for a while yet either."

"I'll carry her" Zack offered. "But I think we best be moving on ahead." Rose agreed and got to her feet. Zack did the same after taking a final moment to wake himself, and found he had better success this time, although he still felt a tired ache that ran through his body. It wasn't a physical soreness, but an internal one. Everything felt heavy, like a weight had appeared over his shoulders. It was only now he was truly grasping the toll of the earlier exchange.

Rose meanwhile was up and about, although how close to her full strength she was Zack had no idea. He guessed she was still only half at best, but she neither showed nor verbalized any problems. An idea entered his mind.

"Perhaps Wen simply plans to wear us out by throwing us into constant battles" Zack thought aloud. "By the way we're going, we're only going to stumble to the end, at which point we'll be easy pickings…"

"Perhaps" Rose replied. "But if that was his plan, he had a perfect chance to execute it while we slept. The fact we remain unhurt makes me think he has something different in mind."

"Gah, what the hell is his motive? I cannot understand that guy" Zack grumbled.

"It's best you don't try to, you'd have a better chance at finding a needle in a haystack of many acres than trying to comprehend the twisted mind of a madman like him. We'll just have to continue with the knowledge we do know. Which is whatever he is doing, it isn't good for us, no matter how it seems." Zack glanced at his dragoon stone, and despite what Rose said, he still wondered.

With Lucile secured on Zack's back, they three of them exited the room and back out onto the starry mat. To their surprise all the squares were light with a silvery glow, and when Rose tested it by placing on foot on one of the squares, she found it solid. The entire board was solid, granting them a seemingly easy passage across to the other rooms.

"What the…?" Zack asked cautiously. Rose still only planted one foot on the mat, not yet game enough to place her entire body on it.

"I think we're expected" Rose said morosely. "I don't think the games are finished yet."

"Yet we have no choice but to continue, right?" Zack added. Rose nodded, then walked across the now light board of squares. She moved until she reached the opposite side, a small plateau that bended like an L. A green teleport device shone dimly at the end.

Rose signaled Zack to cross, and for a horrifying moment she had a vision of him falling to his doom with Lucile. Bu he made it across unhindered, which only made Rose's worries grow.

They stood on the teleporter and were wisped away to another section of the edifice.

When they landed, what stood in front of them was a narrow, windy path. To Zack's disgust, what appeared to litter the gothic walkway were humanoid looking bones. Above them various objects and machines hummed ghastly. At the end of that walkway laid another teleport device, and Zack let out a small groan.

"God, Even I'm getting sick of this. I'm almost thankful Lucile is unconscious; she'd nearly die with all this teleporting." Rose didn't reply, only continued with a determined focus. She stood on the pad first, then shot away in the green orb. Zack sighed once more then turned his head to Lucile, who rested on his shoulder. "You're lucky you're not awake for all this" he muttered then followed Rose.

When Zack saw what was in front of him another chill swept through him. Another thin walkway (although this time it appeared almost made of brick) spread out in front of them in numerous directions. On both sides of the path braziers lit the way, although instead of the usual orange and red flame Zack was accustomed to, blue, ghostly flames blazed hauntingly. Rose stopped a few meters in front of the teleport, surveying the area.

"What's wrong?" Zack asked. Rose looked ahead, seeming to calculate, or perhaps recall, which one of the two he couldn't tell.

"This place holds a certain significance" Rose enlightened. Before she could go into any more detail, Wen appeared before them, hovering just out of reach.

"It was here you had to battle the corrupted soul of a dear friend" Wen spoke. "Lavitz I believe his name was, right?"

Rose glanced up at him, seemingly disinterested. "What is it this time? You have another task for us no doubt?"

He smiled cruelly. "Why, I set up a nice reunion for you Rose! That's why I let you get lots of rest!"

"I'm surprised you didn't take the cheap chance to dispose of us" Zack spat.

"C'mon, I'm not like that, I don't need to take cheap shots like that, and plus, that would be so anti-climatic." He smiled again. "As I was saying, I have arranged a great meeting for you Rose. I believe you were very close to this person. Don't worry; I'll let you thank me later."

What manifested next was a man in red with blonde hair, strikingly similar to Rose's ex comrade Dart. His blue eyes were as icy as Rose's, and his large build was similar to Zack's. He walked below Wen, and then stopped. Rose could only gape in shock and wonder.

"Well, I'll not interfere with this reunion" Wen chirped. "So without a further ado!" A gale of wind engulfed Wen, and when it dissipated moments later, he was gone.

"… Zieg?" Rose said with a quivery voice full of uncertainty. Zack looked at her and then at him, and thought _this is not good. I can feel from here that his bad news. I just hope that Rose realizes that._

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" Zieg said, and although he spoke pleasantly, of any emotion in that tone, there was none.

"Rose, be on your guard, he means us ill, that I can tell" Zack warned, although by the stunned look on her face, he wondered if the message got through. Wondered if she even heard him come to that.

"You let me die again Rose, for the second time. And for the second time… you get away, free to live your life." This time his voice held a strong resentment. The words pierced Rose like a lance.

"No… I didn't…" Rose replied without much conviction. Zack could already see Rose's resistance was beginning to crumble.

Zieg drew his sword.

"It's not Zieg Rose!" Zack barked. "It may look like him, but it's just a trick, don't get sucked into it!'

"Oh, it's very much me" Zieg stated. "I have had to dwell here, while you're off living your prosperous life. I gave you everything Rose, my love, my body, my soul. I even gave you a second chance after the defeat of Melbu. But again, I died while you survived, damming me to this hell." He advanced slowly. "And look at this, it didn't take you long to replace me, did it? Well now it's your turn Rose, your turn to burn in this damnation with me!"

Rose couldn't even form the words of a reply at this point. She could only star at him, a look of hurt, yearning and desperation in her eyes.

"Rose! Snap out of it; draw your sword for god's sake!" Zack screamed, but to no avail. She was in a world of her own internal suffering and grief at the moment, where not even Zack's voice could reach her.

**Note:**Well, well, an interesting chapter indeed! Sorry to leave you on another cliffhanger, it seems to have become a habit of mine Hehe. Hope you enjoyed the latest chapter; I should have the next one posted soon!

- Michael


	52. Chapter 52

**Chapter 52**

Zieg rushed towards Rose, pure malice gleaming in his eyes.

"Stay out of it!" Rose cried, and Zack came to a halt. She had drawn her own sword and a few seconds later it clashed with Zieg's.

_Christ he really means to kill her _Zack thought. Rose and Zieg engaged in a brutal fence off, their blades but a blur to Zack. Yet Zack could still spot amongst the flurry of blows that Rose was only defending and the majority of the strikes were from Zieg.

Rose what are you doing? Quit defending and try to kill him!" Zack encouraged hotly.

"Stay out of it!" Rose retorted, and she lunged her first real strike. It caught Zieg off guard, the strength of the blow sending him back a step. She followed up with a swift kick to the lower abdomen, and he doubled back, falling to a knee.

"Now Rose! C'mon kill him already!"

But she only stood there, as if mesmerized. He rose slowly, a hysteric look formed on his face.

"You can't kill me eh?" he said, raising his broadsword once more. "C'mon, where is that Black Monster? The one who killed thousands over a millennia, not stopping at even children or babies." Rose recoiled as if struck, and Zack could only watch helplessly as he attacked her now apparent mental fragility.

_I'll have to step in; Rose won't bring herself to kill him. _He stepped back towards the teleport device and warped to the next room putting Lucile gently on the ground. _Sorry about this Lucile. _He then warped back, turned towards Zieg charged, ignoring Rose's cries of protest as he swung his spear. Zieg ducked without much effort, and then Zieg shot a small ball of fire that ignited in his hand. A small explosion of fire and smoke enclosed the area he was in. Rose let out a cry of anguish as Zieg snickered.

"And then there was one. Any other of your deluded friend you wish to sacrifice first?"

"I'm not done yet!" A voice announced from the smoke. Zack charged fourth towards Zieg, using his powerful wings acquired through his quick transformation to propel him at a high speed. Zieg guarded, and then it was Rose's turn to watch haplessly as her past and present comrades engaged in a grueling duel. No amount of shouting or ordering stopped them. She would have to impose herself physically, and she did just that. She concentrated deeply, pulling out her dark magic in the form of a small orb in her hand. It shot towards an unsuspecting Zack and struck him straight in the chest. Zack shout out a sharp groan of pain and he hit the ground heavily, his chest feeling like it had been set ablaze. Dark chains spawned out of the small orb hovering above his chest, wrapping around his body, constricting him like a snake. He felt his power being sapped and despite his Dragoon Armour he felt his body sizzling, not allowing him to create a coherent thought.

Rose wasted no time in sprinting towards the restricted Zack, acting as a barrier before Zieg could take the opportunistic offensive. In once swift motion and an incredible feat of strength and agility she pulled him on her chest and ran towards the teleporter. Even though the capturing chains were her own spell, the contact still burned her unprotected arms. Zieg only watched mildly, seeming not interesting in taking the cheap blow. Rose positioned him near the teleporter, uttering "I'm sorry Zack, this is my battle. Please forgive me." She stood up, leaving him there as he responded with painful groans. Zieg grinned wickedly.

"So have you grown a heart after all these years Rose? Or are you just fooling yourself?" he snarled. "You'll always be a monster!" and sent fourth another barrage. Rose once more only defense, while Zack tried all he could to break the spell on him. He couldn't overpower it.

"Fight me Rose, I am all that stands in your way, do what you've always done" and he knocked her down, pointing the sword towards her throat. "Die!" he called, trusting in downward. Rose could only just turn her head and inch away, but she felt the steel blade slice the back of her neck.

I_t's real after all, that blade was solid steel_ Rose thought dejectedly. There was no doubt about it, it was Zieg. _His damnation has twisted and corrupted his soul_ she thought, but knew she couldn't bring herself to attack him.

"Zieg, we don't have to do this!" Rose pleased, hoping to talk some kind of reason into him. Zieg only spat scornfully, opting to answer with his blade rather than words. Rose kept trying to reach him, pleading to a side that seemed to no longer exist, the side of him that loved and wanted to wed her. The insanity of his face only grew with each attempt, clearly taking pleasure at her desperation. She still refused to try and return any offensive, and after minutes of trying again and again to call off the encounter, she remained quiet, silent anguish plastered on her face.

Zieg halted his advances, smiling wickedly. "Why, I'm not the only soul here who has been sent to this hell" Zieg spat venomously. Small balls of blue and white hovered by Zieg's side. They transformed into royal guards of Mille Seasu, and while their faces were hidden behind their helmets, the spirits voices echoed towards her as they berated her, calling her what thousands of other had. A Black Monster.

Zieg could see Rose's resolve dissolving, her eyes becoming downcast, her stoic face cracking, revealing the pained guilt underneath she had always been carrying.

The guards shot towards her, swords drawn, and as Rose brought her own up to defend they vanished upon contact.

_Only phantasms_ Rose thought with a dull kind of surprise. But it wasn't over yet, more apparitions appeared, this time the townspeople from Neet she had slaughtered years ago. They did the same thing, making chide remarks before rushing her, only to disappear without any contact. More souls came to life, and the process was repeated many times over, all victims she had claimed for what she thought was the sake of the earth. She could only close her eyes and try to cover her ears, trying to block out their torment. It did no good, soon all the voices seemed to blend into one, calling her a monster, a killer, a creature of darkness and death, telling her it's her that should be trapped in eternal damnation. Then there was another voice, a shrill scream. It wasn't until she opened her eyes and saw no other spirits that she realized that voice had been her own. Zieg still stood there, laughing at her suffering. By this stage it had become painfully clear that Zieg not only wanted her to die, but to torture her. He was going to pick her apart piece by piece.

Then Zieg's voice changed into an all familiar tone.

"Rose, you couldn't even protect me." Rose looked at him with wide eyed horror. Although it was Zieg who was mouthing the words, it was Charlie Frahma's voice that reverberated. "Like the many others in your wake of destruction, you let me die too. I was a fool to trust such an important mission to!" The voice was harsh and cold. The torture was too much. She fell on her knees, tears rolling down her face as Zieg, talking with Charlie's voice, continued to verbally attack her.

"You failed, failed us all!" it roared. Then the Zieg's voice returned to his own. The malice and hate was absent now, yet he said next and the way he said it was infinitely worse.

"You failed me Rose" he said in a low voice, and those words pierced her heart and soul like a lance. Rose's sword dropped to her side. She was now beaten, not physically, but for the first time in her lifetime… mentally and emotionally. She lowered her heard, awaiting the final blow which couldn't come quick enough.

"I'm sorry" she muttered in a low and sobbing voice.

"It's too late" Zieg replied, his voice devoid of even the tiniest bit of emotion. "You can only hope to try and repent with your death." He raised his sword high in the air. Rose didn't make a move, only nodded, defeated.

"Rose no!" Zack hollered from behind her. His voice was full of pain that Rose's binding spell had put on him, but he pressed on despite it. "You're not that person anymore! You've changed!"

Rose looked at him like he was her savior, her bastion of hope, her only ray of light. "You're no longer that monster, I… we all know that. You need to believe it, believe that you can redeem yourself in this life!"

"And what would he know?" Zieg retorted a little amused. "He's been around you how long? He doesn't know the real you at all, or the devastation of your atrocities."

"You're wrong! I've been affected by it as well! But I've forgiven, I've moved forward, and it's time you do as well Rose. Yes you've done some unspeakable things, and no there is no excuse for them, but your death is not going to change any of that! You can only hope to repent by doing good in the life you have left!"

"The problem is that while many of us are here suffering, she is free to live on a prosperous life! She should be here, paying for her sins, she –"

"She _is _paying for them!" Zack interrupted. "She carries the weight of those souls on her shoulders every waking minute of her long living life! She has been forever plagued by the memories of each life she has taken. You should know this better than anyone! Don't you love this woman? Aren't you the same man that wanted to marry her!?"

Zieg's expression remained stoic. "That is irrelevant. It's now a matter of justice; it is her time for judgment. She shall join us down here, and suffer for eternity and more for her crimes.

"But who made you the judge!? Perhaps she will have to suffer when she dies, but that isn't up to any of us to decide! Are you truly mad!?"

"…Zack, enough" Rose said softly. "Your words are kind, kinder than I've ever heard, or deserve for that matter. But I am now willing to accept the penalty."

Zieg advanced closer, his swords moving threateningly.

"Fight Rose, fight! We need you, people outside need you! We need to stop Melbu from destroying everything we have! Please, don't give in! You are Rose, the most powerful fighter, the most powerful women… no, the most powerful individual I have ever met. You shape your own destiny, you don't let others deicide it. C'mon, this is not you! There is still so much left unfinished…"

"It's too late for all that" Zieg said, raising his sword over his head executioner style. "Now, there is only death, and I shall deliver it." The sword hung above Rose's exposed neck. She still made no move.

In one last desperate attempt to talk her out of her death sentence, Zack screamed "Rose I love you, please don't leave me!"

And Zieg's sword came down upon her. However instead of meeting the flesh of the back of her neck like it was supposed to, it met the steel of her blade. Zieg's eyes widened with surprise.

"I'm sorry Zieg, but I'll have to put that date on hold. There are still things I have to do first." In a quick instant she forced him back, sprung to her feet and drove her rapier through her ex fiancée's chest. And then all fell deathly silent.

Rose and Zieg locked eyes in a stare down, and then something unexpected happen. His lips twitched into a smile. All of the dark malice and hate seemed to evaporate like a haze. Underneath was a look of bemused Clarity.

"Rose…" he began, but didn't know what quite to follow with. Rose could only stare back, stupefied. Then Zieg let out a blood filled cough, and remembering the situation (and amazed she had momentarily forgotten it) she quickly withdrew the sword from his chest. He stumbled back a few steps as blood dripped down the wound. Yet he showed no visible signs of pain or even discomfort. Just a man who looks resigned to his fate.

"Sorry about that" and he let out one of his sheepish grins. It was just like he always did, it became a sort of trademark of his, and she felt it melt her from the inside. Yet she still couldn't say anything, she could only still look on dumbfounded.

"I guess I gave you quite the hard time. You see I was… kinda called here against my will. This was the result…." He smile faded.

Rose finally found her voice again. But what came out of her mouth next made her wish she never did.

"Did you really intend to kill me?" she asked, and then chastised herself for it. The answer was obvious, and it made her feel like a helpless child again asking it. The lowering of his eyes told her all that she needed to know however.

"Just know that… what I said wasn't true. I never blamed you for anything, not for a second."

Rose nodded, but fell silent again. They both did for a moment, and then Zack's voice cut in, his presence almost forgotten.

"Her um…. Can I be released yet?" he asked in suppressed pain. Rose let out a small cry and released the binding spell immediately. He slipped back into his human form, but his arms and legs still burned. Putting that aside for the time being, he looked at Zieg a moment to gage if he was any longer a kind of threat. After a few moments of deliberation, he came to a decision.

"I'll give you two a few minutes… I'll go check on Lucile." Zack glanced at Rose to make sure it was okay, and she gave him a solemn nod. Eager to leave because he felt like a third wheel of such, he walked back into the teleport device and disappeared to the previous area.

"You've come a long way Rose" Zieg complimented brightly. "You have gained a lot of confidence; the old, insecure Rose that I know seems to have vanished in the space between our last meetings."

"That's not true" Rose replied, putting her head down. "I haven't changed at all. I'm just a little better at hiding it…"

Zieg closed the small space between them with a swift step and placed his hands on her shoulders, forcing Rose to face him. He was still smiling.

"If there's one good thing that came out of this, it was the fact you were able to defeat the demons of your past, the ones you have been letting haunt you for all of your life…"

His soft, reassuring tone seemed to create a ripple effect deep inside her. Tears crystallized at the corners of her eyes, threatening to spill down her face like rain. Yet she wouldn't let it happen. She had to keep firm. She pulled out of his grasp

"You're wounds…" she stammered, changing the focus. He looked down absently at his bleeding stab wound, but shrugged. "It doesn't really matter. I'm sure you know this, but my time here is almost up, one way or the other."

She nodded as melancholy that was bordering outright despair shadowing her face like a gloom. She now felt somehow empty inside, like a shell. For a moment the bizarre idea of pleading for him to stay crossed her mind. But as quick as it had come she gained a semblance of self control amongst the maelstrom that was her emotions, and the thought was dismissed just as quickly as it had arrived.

As if able to read her mind, Zieg stated unhappily "As much as I'd love to help you in your struggle, I cannot. I'm not meant to be here, not even meant to exist. If you get right down to it, I should have been killed eleven thousand years ago… when I put my life in front of yours."

Zieg quickly realized the effect his words would have on her as Rose's head dropped once more, a look of guilt flashing across her face. Zieg grabbed her by the shoulders again and said "and I'd do it again and again."

There was no helping it; she could no longer fight back the flood of tears that cascaded like a stream. She broke down, no longer able to control herself (and no longer caring at this point) and Zieg could only just hold her, acting as her anchor. And for several minutes, nothing more was said. For the time being, they took comfort in each other's presence, and that was all that mattered.

* * *

When Zack had gone back to check on Lucile he was surprised to see she had woken and was crossed legged, sitting before the green teleport sphere.

"How long have you been awake?" he asked her as he took a seat next to her.

"About thirty seconds" she said, still in a kind of daze. "Where is Rose?" she asked, a sense of urgency now creeping into her tone.

"She's okay" Zack reassured calmly. He took a seat next to her and took the next few minutes to explain what had happened while she was unconscious. Lucile showed worry and deep gratitude when he explained the process he and Rose went through to keep her alive. He left out a few key points, particularly the danger their lives were I during the process (he didn't want her to worry or feel guilty), yet he thought she was still sharp enough to gleam the implications anyway. She was more than apt at reading between the lines. After he finished with the battle of Rose and Zieg, he fell silent.

"I guess we'll just wait and give them some time together" Zack said, not able to hide the grim tone.

"Are you worried about her?" she asked. She focused for a moment, closing her eyes. "I sense no malicious intent, so she'll be safe with him."

"It's not that" he replied. When it seemed he wasn't going to elaborate any further, she prompted him to continue, but he shook his head. "It's nothing."

"Oooh, is it perhaps jealousy?" she replied with a playful smirk. Zack let out an dismissive grunt, but she could see a light hue of red travel up his neck and cheeks.

"None the less, I think its best we wait until Rose gets us" Lucile decided. "Plus I'm not so sure my body is willing to move yet." Zack nodded, giving his non verbal agreement, yet his thoughts still lay with Rose. Something about the two of them together unsettled him, but whether it was due to some childish jealousy or a deeper sense of anger he didn't yet quite know.

* * *

"I think I'll have to kill Dart" Rose said, breaking the silence. She expected Zieg to protest the idea, even show anger or dismay, but he only nodded with a calm acceptance. Rose arched an eyebrow towards him and said "You're not going to object?"

He sighed, looking skyward. "I don't like the idea at all, don't get me wrong, and I wish there was another way, however…" he paused a moment, searching carefully for his words. "I think Dart would want this. He is not himself at the moment, just as I was not me during the period I was possessed. It was a horrible process, your own soul being trapped within your body. You're still conscious of what is going on, yet you are powerless to stop it. It was torture, having to watch your own body commit those atrocities, watching someone else control you. There's a piece of Dart still in there, praying for a release, even if that release meant his body destruction. And knowing my son, he would want nothing less if he knew his existence would destroy many lives."

Rose was at a loss of what to say. To give your own son a death sentence, how can he bear it? He turned away, hiding his face, and Rose fancied she saw a tear slid down his bloodied face. Rose put a tentative arm on the back of his shoulder and said "I'll try and find away to exorcise him without destroying his body" she pledged.

"It was my fault" he murmured. "Twice I had the chance to destroy him, and both times I failed, and now my son is paying for it."

_No Zieg, it was I who failed _Rose thought, but could only keep a hand on him.

"Frahma's become more mad than ever before. His defeat destroyed the last remnants of his sanity, and now he wished to gain the power of all the Dragoon Spirits combined to wreck havoc on Endiness. He must be stopped, at all costs."

Rose was startled. "But is it really possible to force the service of the spirits? They choose their masters at whim, surely he cannot slave their power to himself?"

"He is mad and unstable, but he has the brain of a true scientist, a genius even. I have no doubt he has the means to accomplish such an impossible feat."

"But even if we destroy the body… will his souls simply occupy another vessel?" Rose asked. Zeig's face turned more solemn than ever.

"It is probable, so you'll have to find a way to destroy his soul."

_Great, more complications, as if I needed anymore… _

Zeig began to convulse, falling to his knees with a series of raspy coughs.

"Zeig, are you alright!?" she cried, kneeling down to his side. When the fit subsided took a moment to recompose himself. "I haven't got much time left…. Summon your friends; I have one last gift to give to you all." She looked at him questionably. "Just go, quickly" he urged with more sharpness then intended. Rose hesitated a moment before rushing towards the teleporter.

She reappeared moments later, Zack and Lucile following in tow. Zieg was still hunched on his knees, his artificial face drained of almost all colour. _His time is nearly up _Rose thought with numbed closure.

When the trio ventured toward him he stood up (with obvious effort) and fronted the three of them.

"As I'm sure you've already figured out, my time is short so we must make this quick. You're all aware of the treat Melbu Frahma imposes, not just to you three, but the entire world as a whole. He means to bring about the utter destruction of everything, and it is up to you three to make sure he doesn't achieve that goal." He paused, looking sheepish a moment as if unsure what next to say to his audience, and then finished. "I wish I could help you with this, but regrettably all I can do is grant you passage out of here." He signaled for the three to step in a small circle adjacent to him.

"Can you really do this?" Zack asked skeptically.

"I will use the last of my power to do so yes, however where you will end up… I cannot be sure." Zack looked ready to protest but Zieg hurried along. "I haven't got much time; if we don't hurry I won't be able to do it." He took a few steps back, closed his eyes and muttered something. The ground beneath the trio turned prismatic, and Zieg opened his eyes for a final time.

"I wish you all the best of luck." Zieg spoke, his face turning grave. He was looking at Rose now, and she at him. She didn't move out of the multi coloured circle that had lit around them, but she extended her hand. Zieg took it and squeezed it gently. "I always have, and always will love you Rose" he said.

"And I you" she replied, fighting back another wave of tears. "Thank you for all you have done, and all you have shown me. I could never thank you enough."

"You can by staying alive and finding peace in your life" Zieg returned, breaking the small contact. "And peace I hope you managed to find once this ordeal is over, one way or the other." He turned to Lucile, who seemed surprised to be noticed.

"I regret I was never able to properly meet such a beautiful lass" he said, and Lucile's cheeks flushed. "Yet I sense a strong spirit within you, as one would expect to be chosen by the Silver-White Dragoon Spirit. Look after your comrades for me, they will need it."

"You have my word" she said, bowing her head slightly. He smiled, and faced Zack, who stared at him coolly. Zieg only returned the intense stare, before he put a hand on his shoulder, grasping it hard. Zieg gave a single nod, to which Zack replied with the same. A moment of wordless comprehension passed between the two warriors, and Zieg released his grip on Zack's shoulder. _I now pass on the mantle to you _that gesture said. _Look after her and protect her. _

Then Zieg walked back a few paces to where he was. "Goodbye to you all and thank you for giving my soul its much needed rest. I doubt we will meet again in this life, yet if there is another, I shall wait for you there. Then he closed his eyes once more, focused, and everything went white.

* * *

It only took an instant, one moment they were watching Zieg in Mayfil, and now they were in an area where the sounds of swords clashing and magic exploding filled their ears before the matching vision could visualize. Rose drew her sword quickly and told her comrades to do likewise.

Rose took a quick moment to survey her surroundings. They were thrown straight into a battle; she could see Wingly soldiers and other grey dressed soldiers in a heated battle, both on ground and in the air. In front of them stood the most dominant structure; the Black Castle. Whether that was by chance or design, she didn't know.

They were on the ebon bridge leading towards the castle entrance Rose managed to find out as she barked orders to her two companions. They got down low and headed towards cover, but before they could go totally unnoticed a large ball of fire hurled towards them.

It dispersed in an explosion of vapor, and what jumped down to greet them was a grey dressed women whose face at first was so marred by black soot that it took a moment for Rose to realize who she really was. She supposed that also had to do with her slightly changed appearance, but her eyes were the same.

"Shana" Rose said, surprised. "What is going on?"

Shana beckoned them behind one of the large pillars supporting the bridge for cover.

"Glad you guys could make it" she said, yelling over the echoes of the surrounding battle. "While you were gone, we managed to rally the troops of all Endiness to launch a final attack." It was then that Rose realized that along with the grey fighters were soldiers from all over the world. Fletz and even soldiers from Deningrad were involved in an all out assault for the main gate. Rose was genuinely shocked at the scene playing out before her.

"It won't be successful of course unless you manage to get in there and kill both Wen and Melbu Frahma of course; however we have provided a big enough distraction for you to do just that. Now is your time to get in there and end this once and for all."

Rose looked at Shana and smiled. "Thank you, we shall not fail." Both Zack and Lucile nodded form behind her and Shana returned the smile.

"Then go! We know he is holed up in the castle somewhere; it'll be up to you to find him and end this madness for good. Go with my luck Rose, gods know you'll need it." Another ball of flame combusted above them.

"You take care as well you hear?" Rose said sternly. Shana nodded.

"I'll be fine, now go, before they find out you're here."

Rose turned to Zack and Lucile. "You heard her, this is it. The final battle, no more running around and playing it safe. We end it all here and now, understand?" Zack noticed a spark in her eyes, a blaze that only meant one thing: There will be much blood spilled.

"Let's do this, for us, for everyone. Let's end it quick so we can avoid unnecessary fatalities" Lucile agreed. Zack just looked up at Rose, then to Lucile, then back at Rose.

"Lead the way commander" he said, and the three of them ran towards the large castle doors, ready to meet their destinies.


	53. Chapter 53

**Chapter 53**

They entered through the main gates, intending to storm the castle from the front, hoping the distraction of the battle outside would take away most of their security. Once inside however, they were surprised to find it was empty. No fighting, no soldiers, just the three of them, walking in the great hall, making their way slowly towards the main elevator on the opposite side which would take them to the throne room where they suspected Melbu were hiding.

"Be on your guard" Rose warned, readying her blade. "I sense we will have to fight our way to Frahma, he won't simply let us waltz towards him unhindered, even with the battle outside taking place"

"But… there's nothing in here at all. No soldiers, guards or anything. Surely he wasn't foolish enough to deploy his entire army outside the castle?" Zack asked.

"That's what worries me… it's too easy. Be alert, it could be a trap."

"But we have the element of surprise, yes?" Lucile added. "Perhaps he thinks we're still in Mayfil, and have no way of getting here quick enough to aid the battle?"

Suddenly the room came to life. The elevators roared, while each passage and door was being flooded with Sandorian soldiers.

"Melbu is no fool, you cannot underestimate him" Rose replied, then dashed towards the horde of soldiers, slashing at anything that moved. Zack did likewise, taking the masses head on, using his long spear reach to fall the soldiers before they could get within cutting distance of their smaller swords. Lucile used her superior martial arts to disable what soldiers came near her, however the three of them found room was quickly becoming scarce, and it wasn't long before they were almost back to back in a kind of triangle.

"Despite the overwhelming numbers, these are only small fry. Try to save your strength and avoid transforming if possible, we'll need that for the battles ahead" Rose commanded, dogging an onslaught of swords being thrust in her direction. The numbers may have been with the Sandorian soldiers; however the finesse of the battle hardened veterans allowed them to defeat them despite the advantage. Bodies mounted around the hall, blood colouring the floor and walls like graffiti.

Then the elevators opened, and the genome soldiers entered the fray, some choosing to engage up close, while others hung back, using ranged magic to try and support their frontline comrades. Zack was hit with a particularly nasty ball of flame, and it sent him crashing into a nearby wall, where he was descended upon by masses of soldiers.

"Zack no!" Rose cried, watching his body disappear under a wave of soldiers. Rose tried to run to him, but she was cut off by the enemy, which she cut down mercilessly with growing hysteria. Then the soldiers converged upon Zack were blown off him with an explosion of fire. When the smoke settled, Zack was standing there with a smile, harmless save for a few minor cuts and bruises.

"Don't worry about me Rose, I don't need to be babysat, just look out for yourself" he reassured, entering another frenzied duel. Rose smiled to herself. He was right, she had to trust in him more, put more confidence in their cause and ability. With seemingly renewed effort, even with the half human-wingly aberrations, they could only fall before the might of the last three warriors of hope. Trained from many grueling battles and sparring sessions, Zack and Lucile were just a precise as Rose was, striking with clinical, calculated lethality that was forged through countless battles. Their bodies had become accustomed to the strain of combat, the pain of gashes and wounds, the weariness of fatigue and intense concentration was secondary, almost an afterthought to the adrenaline and survival instinct which they had learned to harness so well. One by one, they all fell as the three fighters killed enemy after enemy, their figures gliding across the hall dangerously, carving anyone, or anything in their path. Soon no more soldiers, Sandorian or genome, entered the hall.

"Is that all of 'em?" Zack wondered aloud, puffed. Sweat slid of his face like he was showering in it. He didn't notice this or how out of breath he was of course until he had a few moments to settle down. Rose and Lucile were the same by the looks of it.

"It seems so, for the time being" Rose replied, straightening a little. The surveyed the mountain of bodies that covered the floor. Not all of them were dead, some of them were still moving, while others could only groan, waiting for death to take them. Zack let out a sigh of disgust.

"It never gets easier… all this carnage…"

Rose began to walk towards the wounded and dying, delivering a quick and painless death with a swing of her blade.

"You're finishing off the wounded!?" Zack asked in disbelief.

"They are going to die anyway, we may as well kill them rather than prolong their suffering" she replied, not seeing the problem in her actions, as if killing akin to the simple act of breathing. To her in any case it practically was.

"My god Rose! They may be the enemy, but damn, don't you have any sympathy? They can't help the side they're on, they have to follow orders, it's enough that we have to fight them as it is but adding to the death toll isn't helping" he argued, outraged.

"We haven't the time to argue this Zack. We have to make sure they are all dead, for one reason to put them out of their pained misery, and second so they cannot become a hindrance later on. Many soldiers are stubborn, and let's not forget we are invading their home land this time, and for that they will fight for to the death, even if not for their leader."

"This… is your twisted sense of mercy?" Zack questioned, bewildered. Rose ignored him and continued culling the wounded. Lucile looked away, unable to watch. While she didn't voice her disagreement like Zack did, she was as much against the cruelty as he was. When it was done she returned to the group.

"You've been cut" Lucile said, looking at the shallow slash that ran up part of her left forearm. "Do you want me to mend it?" Rose shook her head.

"Conserve your energy, we'll need it later." She turned to Zack, whose head was downcast. "This is a war Zack; we cannot afford to take prisoners. This was a road of bloodshed, you knew that when you embarked on it. And there will be more killing to come, so don't let your conscience be the death of you."

Zack didn't reply, only looked at her with a look of exasperation. She was right, but at the same time she was wrong. It was so barbaric…

The sound of the main elevator screeched to life, and the three of them snapped their heads in that direction.

"It appears we have company" Lucile said with anticipation. When it came down, Sandorian Elites sprang fourth, rushing towards them.

"Watch out for their long ranged attacks!" Rose warned. More soldiers poured into the hall, much like the first wave, but the three of them managed to hold them off. They were fewer in numbers than the first wave, but that didn't make it any easier. Quite the contrary, with the Sandorian Elites were added, it only got harder. Zack suffered several lashed from the elite's extended whip like chain, and if not for Rose's intervention at the last moment, he may have become an added number to the death toll.

But they didn't get much reprieve, a third wave descended upon them like hungry piranhas, smelling blood. Exhausted and injured, they fended another onslaught, but each time they did the endured more injures, which would in turn weaken them for the battle to come. The dead piled on one another until they were fighting on top of lifeless corpses, which if not for the frenzied state of battle, would have sent a horrible chill down Zack's spine.

But again despite the numbers advantage, the three Dragoon warriors managed to stave off another the third assaulted.

"What does he hope to achieve in this madness? They are only sending these soldiers to their deaths!" Zack cried in frustration.

"They are meant to soften us up" Rose said, although she had trouble talking between the deep intake of breaths. Her lungs felt like they were on fire. They prepared for another wave, yet when none seemed forthcoming, everything fell deathly silent.

"I don't like this" Zack said, worried. "I think you're right Rose, they serve not as a purpose to kill, but to hinder, to make us use our resources so we have nothing left if Melbu or Wen decide to face us themselves."

The lifts went up once more, and the footsteps of approaching soldiers reverberated around the hall. To the three warriors, it sounded like a death sentence.

"I don't know how much longer I can keep this up" Zack admitted feebly.

"Neither do I" Lucile agreed, her white uniform drenched in blood and sweat. Rose remained quiet and focused.

"If we're going to die, then we'll do it fighting" she said, reading herself for what could very well be their final stand. "Die with honour and dignity."

Then from behind them the main double doors opened and reinforcements in the form of Basil, Tiberoan and Deningrad soldiers came to their aid, Shana at the helm in her makeshift body.

"Hope we're not intruding" she said with a smile. Zack laughed while Lucile and Rose wore an expression of surprise and gratitude. Now, the two forces were locked in a stare down, eyeing one another with contempt. "We, the soldiers of hope, will purge all evil in the name of the light!" she bellowed. "All who do not wish to die, lay down your arms, we do not want to kill if we can help it."

There seemed to be a murmur among the Sandorian soldiers. The one emerged from the pack, taking the front. By the look of his steel armour and styled helm, which made the others look dowdy in comparison, he looked to be a sort of commander, and one of high authority.

"You dare invade our homeland, and expect us to lay down our arms for you!?" he questioned with seething rage. "You expect us to simply give you Imperial Sandora on a platter, in the name of this so called light!?

"We are not after your land or country brave commander" Shana replied. "We are simply after the one who leads you, who has led you astray. Like us, you are mere pawns in his game to attain enough power to destroy our planet. He will use you, and when they are done, you too will suffer the same fate: utter destruction.

Another murmur spread across the Sandorian battalion.

"I don't want to see any more blood spilled, not on his behalf not for him, the real evil at work. He is the true threat to Sandora, not us. Lay down your arms and let us put an end to this fruitless battle, or better yet join us and help us conquer Wen and Melbu Frahma!"

At the mention of the old Wingly tyrants name, more murmurs and whispers could be heard from the soldiers of Sandora.

"If you do not wish to fight of us, that is fine, but fight for yourselves, fight for Serdio, and help us bring back an age of piece… Please…"

There were no more whispers or mumbles. The soldiers all looked at their commander, waiting for his next move. The apparent commanded drew his blade, put it level with his eyes so he could see the steel, and then placed it on the floor along with his helmet.

"I cannot speak for the army, however I will not stop you" the commander said. His now visible eyes, one scarred, were of deep pain and regret. "I thought something was wrong with those two the moment they set foot in this city." Then the others soldiers did the same, placing down their arms in an act of surrender.

"Thank you" Shana said gratefully. "You have done the right th---" she was cut off by a barrage of fireballs from behind the Sandorian army, which rained upon the soldiers like mortars. It obliterated anything in the area, and sounds of shock came from Zack and Lucile.

"Oh my god, they're attacking their own allies!?" Zack gasped unable to believe the mutiny he was witnessing from the half wingly-human hybrids. The soldiers that weren't killed by the initial burst from the genome soldiers quickly took up their arms and tried to retaliate.

"Remember, they are not human, they have no allegiances or loyalties to anyone other than what they are programmed. It wouldn't surprise me if Wen or Melbu did make them this way on purpose in anticipation for this sort of event."

"We have to help them!" Lucile pleaded. Shana nodded.

"Let us help vanquish these abominations!" Shana commanded, and they rushed to the Sandorian soldier's aid, wiping out the remainder of the genome soldiers with superior numbers. But the damage had already been done, three quarters of the army have been decimated, the commanded along with them.

"Even if they were the enemy, that was hard to watch" Zack said after the battle died down. "They had fought side by side all this time… and to turn on them just like that…"

"Regrettable" Rose agreed. "However there is little we can now do, other than continue on and end this madness." She turned to Shana, who was momentarily occupied with another soldier. When she was finished Shana turned to Rose.

"What a horrible display… they are people just like us, they didn't deserve this." Rose nodded, her eyes flickering at the carnage. Around her she could spot many fighters vomiting at the sight and smell, which was becoming pungent and rancid.

"We'll deal with the rest from here" Rose told her. "We suspect Melbu is holed up in the throne room, so that is where we'll head. It's unlikely that any of you or your soldiers will be able to assist us, after all this is a battle between Dragoons. If you can, I'd like you to stay here and hold the fort, treat any wounded and begin to try and cart out the bodies." Shana agreed with a solemn nod.

"Just get it done. Don't let the sacrifices of today be in vain."

"I'll do my best." With that, she walked towards Zack and Lucile.

"Good luck!" Shana hollered. Rose didn't respond, but thought _we'll sure as hell need all the luck we can get._

"Are you both able to continue?" Rose asked them. Lucile and Zack look taken aback, it was a question that was never in doubt and didn't need to be asked.

"Of course we're ready… till the end" Lucile replied. Zack agreed.

"Until the end… however that end will not be today. We all make it back alive, okay?"

The elevator roared to life yet another time, and all of the remaining soldiers and fighters turned towards it with silent anticipation. After what felt like an eternity to the three Dragoon Knights, who came down the lift next shocked them. Yet it was not the fact it was Wen that was the most alarming but rather the state he was in. His robe had been shredded around the arms and legs, turning it into a sleeveless looking tank top. Gashes covered his beaten body, covering him in a cloak of crimson. He hobbled out the elevator, barely able to even do that. He walked towards the three Dragoon Knights, but fell half way to his knees, spitting out blood.

"What… on earth happened to him?" Zack asked bewildered.

"You said no soldiers breached the upper levels!?" Rose called to Shana.

"No, all of them are here with us…"

"Then… who attacked him?" Zack wondered, amazed. A violent rumble shook the castle above them. The winds seeming to shift as a sinister chill ran through the spine of everyone in the room.

"It's him!" Rose warned sensing not only the overwhelming aura of malice, but also the presence of what could only be one thing: The Divide Dragoon Knight Dart, possessed by Melbu Frahma.

A deafening bang followed by a beam of light smashed through the second floor and right into the ground, decimating the area. While it didn't land on Rose or her comrades, it was uncomfortably close. The subsequent shockwave send them on their back, but Rose and Lucile were nimble enough to roll back onto their knees. Zack however fell back and cracked his head on the floor.

He got up quickly, rubbing his head with the hand not holding his spear. Rose looked over in shock to see it left a large crater, the nearby soldiers obliterated by the divine blast. When the dust settled, the Divine Dragoon Knight Dart grinned wickedly at the three of them.

"Hope I'm not interrupting" he said with a laugh. The voice was different to Dart's; it took a much colder, emotionless tone. It was frightening.

He turned his attention to Wen, who gazed at him in fear.

"And you, you little worm, thought you could get away with double crossing me like a double agent?" He gave Wen a swift kick, which sent him sprawling to the floor.

"Double Agent!?" Zack questioned bemused.

"Ah, you didn't know. Ah yes, he was perhaps one of the best spies I've ever caught. He nearly had me too, I knew Intel was being leaked, but I would never have thought t would be Wen, who I've seen singlehandedly kill, mutilate and torture.

"What… are you talking about?" Zack asked with rising anger. Just what the hell was going on?

"Well, since you'll all die soon, I guess it can't hurt to have ourselves a little talk" Melbu began, his radiant wings flapping silently to keep him above ground. "His allegiance really lies with Serdio, Bale to more specific." He paused a moment, as if for dramatic effect. Everyone was quiet now, some too scared to move, others intent on listening to the unfolding news. "With King Albert to be precise. You see, as I have found out, Albert is not dead at all. He has gone underground, assumed dead by everyone besides Wen and his closest servants. It was all a plan to get him into my ranks, to gain my trust. The little worm was really relaying everything to him, ultimately trying to devise a coup from within."

"Impossible…" Rose muttered.

"Ah, you weren't informed of that either?" the possessed Dart began with a wicked grin. "Well, why should you? After all, you are only tools of war, used when needed, discarded when not. In any event, from behind the scenes Albert has been creating the resistance group you see before you. The one thing he didn't count on was me finding out his plot so soon." He turned to Wen, who appeared barely conscious. "You were so close eh? All that work, all those killings and horrible atrocities you had to commit to gain my trust, will all be for naught." He raised his sword, preparing to deal the final blow, but then stopped, if to ponder.

"I have… a better idea" he turned his attention to Zack, and Zack became alarmed at the sudden spotlight. "You, you'll be the first to die." Zack froze, another chill running through his body like a bolt of lightning. "I'll make Wen watch you go first. He loved you, you know? Loved you like a father does a son. That's why he never killed you when you had the chance, why he gave you back the spirit, which he convinced me was all a part of his larger plan. It was all to protect you." He laughed. "Now, I'll make him watch me kill you slowly!"

Rose stood in front of Zack defiantly. "The only one who will be dying around here will be you!"

Melbu smiled. "Well, why don't you try?" He laughed as he levitated a little more, his arms folded. The cannon attached to his left arm trembled a little. Rose's eyes widened, knowing what was to come next.

"Everyone, back onto the bridge!" she cried, sprinting towards the double hinged doors. All the soldiers followed, pooling into the open area as a ball of energy manifested from the end of the barrel of the Divine Cannon. Melbu laughed maliciously as the ball grew in density and volume, before the ball shot forward, a grand explosion rocking the castle.

She didn't know how many soldiers were wiped out, only hoped that it was quick for them. Rose turned heel immediately, pulling along Zack and Lucile with her. The explosion pushed her onto the outer bridge, the half closest to the castle subsequently crumbling under the pressure of the blast. The three of them shifted into their Dragoon forms and took flight, escaping the fate that many soldiers could not.

Rose looked behind her, ash, embers and particles of debris making it hard to watch as the dark stronghold burned and disintegrated. Still, they could hear the echoes of Melbu laughter.

"What now?" Lucile asked frantically. Smoke blanketed the area they were in, and it would give them a moment to make what small preparations they could. Rose scouted the area, but already an idea was beginning to take shape within her mind, slowly building and improving until it became the basis of a battle plan.

"Listen, you two" Rose began. "I have an idea, however it's a one shot thing, if we mess up, we're done for. The Divine Dragon grants Melbu power even beyond the three of us combined, as one would expect when wielding the power of the strongest Dragon. However, even though it is the epitome of battle prowess, it still has its weaknesses we can exploit. We'll only get once chance, understand?"

Lucile and Zack nodded in unison.

"Good. Now this is the plan."

And so the three make the last preparations for the final confrontation ahead. Yet the outcome, in the end, was something none of them could foresee. Not even Melbu himself.


	54. Chapter 54 Coming Soon!

**Author's long (overdue) note:**

Okay, okay, sorry if the title mislead you! But it's been far too long hasn't it? Well, just letting you all know I'm very much alive and well, and admittedly, after almost dropping the story for good (don't ask why) I've decided to resurrect this story from the brink and give it the ending it (and more importantly all the loyal readers) deserve.

So before I get into it I have no real excuse why I've abandoned this story for so long, it just kind of happened. I tried writing many other stories but to little or no success, so I kinda just got burnt out and took a rather long (long long long...) hiatus from writing in general. None the less I'm looking at getting back into it, so what better way to start then dust off this old gem and finish what a story that should have been years ago? Right? Yeah, so let's do this!

... Only it wasn't as easy as I had originally anticipated. So to preface the situation a little for you all: There I was, sitting at my computer staring at Chapter 54 after realising people are still reviewing the story (can hardly believe it, thank you people) and it was that that inspired me to finish what I started. So I had written a few hundred words forever ago when I was still releasing chapters, and I realised something: I've forgotten so much about the story I don't really know how to adequately end it. Keep in mind it'd be simple to simply slap a lazy ending on it and call it a day, however I want to give this the ending it deserved. Now I still remember the basic idea for the ending I had planned, but as I browsed through the chapter (and then the previous, the one before that) I realised I'd forgotten so much that I couldn't possibly do a proper ending, tying up all the loose ends and what have you. I've forgotten many of the characters (like what I did with Shana... duh) and earlier plot points I had intended to weave in as the story came to a close. So then I realised I'd have to do something first, before I could even think about ending the story: I'd have to re-familiarise myself with it.

And the best way to do that? Read it from scratch. And that's exactly what I did, until it came to my attention how rather poorly (by my standards now, many years on mind you) it was written. Not a bad effort perhaps for a first attempt at a story, but I could barely read the first chapter without pulling out my hair from all the errors and lack of strong direction. So a second idea came to me: I'm going to completely re-edit and revise all the chapters. As of now I've re-uploaded the first three (major improvements to say the least) and will continue to do so as I reach the latest chapter released. This will take a while, however I am dedicated to the cause, will do this as fast as I can, and promise you that I will have the last few chapters released by the end of it. And good ones they should be, I have biiig plans~

In any event in the mean time if you wish to re-familiarise (or are just plain bored) I urge you to re-read the chapters I re-upload. No, I won't be making any major plot changes or anything to change the natural direction of the story, after all it will follow the same original path, so it won't impact the finale if that's all you're waiting for (if that's the case I understand, it's long overdue), but it will be written with clearer prose, with more description as well as much more insight into the early events of the story along with clearing up any errors/mistakes that have been left in there (hopefully without creating new ones... -_-) Basically, my goal by the end of this is to have a much more polished, balanced story as a whole.

For those of you still with me, still holding out patiently for new chapters, I thank you. I have some reviews I haven't responded to, breaking my rule of always responding to a reviewer (I hadn't realised I had any, only when I checked my old e-mail account recently did this come to my attention, poor justification I know but there it is, I wasn't just flat out ignoring you) so I shall reply to those unanswered as soon as I can.

For now I'll leave it as that. It's three am in the morning (it takes a surprisingly long amount of time to revise and re-edit a chapter O.O they have also been lengthened substantially) and I have many more chapters to fix in front of me, so I'll get some sleep and hop to it with the spare time I can gather tomorrow. Hope anyone who reads this is well, I look forward to any still patient (or silly, depending on how you look at it) enough to hold out hope long enough. I will make sure you are all well rewarded.

Michael.


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